Psychologists usually attribute belief in conspiracy theories to a number of psychopathological conditions such as paranoia, schizotypy, narcissism, and insecure attachment,

Which sucks because it means anyone targeted by a real conspiracy cannot get help from anyone, for fear of being labeled mentally unstable.

And that is exactly what the illuminati lizard people who rule the world want
Being mentally unstable isn't a character flaw. We should be encouraging everyone to get help. A good therapist knows what a delusion looks like, what the criteria are, and how to develop a relationship with the client to gently challenge them.

I did a little deep dive on them recently when I realized I was talking to a narcissist with grandiose delusions claiming experts in sociology and such "made up" the gender/sex distinction and, whaddya know, he thinks narcissism is a made-up disorder, too. He's been around our discord server for months and I finally popped off and posted the criteria along with how his multitude of claims fit. He understandable got pissed, but at least everyone else is aware what the criteria is now and how to walk through it themselves. (And to be clear, I only weaponized the term against him because he referred to people using neutral pronouns - such as myself, as he is well aware - delusional).

If you hold a belief with absolute conviction that has been falsified, shown counter evidence, and it impacts your functioning in society, then you may have a delusional belief. It's not uncommon or a big deal once you can recognize it and work out the logic.

We really just need to be teaching psych in high schools, honestly. Destigmatize it. Ik I'm stigmatizing narcissism a bit here, so lemme add that being a narcissist doesn't mean a person will act as abusively (if at all) as the individual I've been dealing with is, nor does abuse imply a mental disorder. It gets nuanced but I think it's fascinating
- Being mentally unstable isn't a character flaw.
  
  The problem is not that the person is being accused of having a character flaw. The problem is that the person cannot get help with the actual conspiracy, because the person’s reports are treated as unreliable.

One thing that I’ve found helpful is from Naomi Klein in her most recent book. To paraphrase - conspiracy theories often get the feelings right, but the facts wrong. For example, we are all being screwed over by banks and hedge funds, but it’s because of the structures of capitalism, not the Jews. But it’s much easier, mentally, to pin the blame on one specific person or group than to grapple with the flaws inherent in the social systems we’ve created.

Can you prove that the structure of capitalism is why we’re being screwed over by banks and hedge funds?
- Sure. For one, the growth imperative means that any business must return a profit as its primary function. If profits are hard to come by, that can lead to things like predatory lending and higher fees for consumers, not to mention investment in environmentally destructive, but profitable, activities. Second, by commodifying human necessities like housing and turning them into investment vehicles, housing is increasingly unaffordable for working people as prices go up. I could go on, if you’d like, but I think those are both fairly compelling arguments.
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The article literally says that a recent review shows that this is unlikely.

Moreover, the occurrence of conspiracy theories is being countered by more openness and helping people feel less powerless.

Examples of such powerlessness could be failure of the government to communicate important facts and decisions, repeated events of large companies overpowering the will of the people, etc.

This makes sense to me. The conditions are right for successful conspiracies, whether they truly exist or not. History is rife with real, proven conspiracies — both failed and successful. That's what happens when power is concentrated and unchecked.
- Exactly. And that is why we‘re here. At least I for my part. To get away from centralized
  
  news coverage
  
  social interaction
  
  intellectual property

Thank god they didn't say "and small penis"!

Because 5 out of 5 would have made me worry.

That's just your paranoia kicking in

remember kids it has absolutely nothing to do with powerful individuals and governments manipulating the masses ~ signed the tuskegee syphilis experiment

That's what THEY want you to think.

The text is not clear whether (a) conspiracy theories cause one to develop psychopathologies or (b) psychopathologies cause one to believe in conspiracy theories.

Regarding the scenario A, maybe, maybe it's because when one finds out a shadowy world under the world we're used to see, their own inner worlds fall down as they were expecting a better world since they were born?

Regarding the scenario B, maybe people with mental health issues are so misunderstood, neglected, bullied and rejected by society (especially by their own families) that they tend to dive themselves into shadowy waters inside the realm of thoughts, consequently finding solace at the knowledge of conspiracy theories?

I dunno, just some hypothesis based... on my own personal experiences... Maybe I'm wrong.

Porque no los dos?

It's possible that both can exist.

I have had depression and anxiety for my entire life. I was treated for both. Then I found out I had ADHD and am on the autism spectrum. Guess what having those and being untreated can cause? Depression and anxiety(amongst others). This doesn't mean that everyone who has anxiety and depression have ADHD and autism. The brain and the mind are highly complex things and very, very often after multiple paths to the same thing.
- Yeah, exactly as you pointed out... both can and probably will coexist.
  
  In my case, I also have been coping with depression and anxiety, but in my case it's derived from my borderline and schizotypal personality disorders (mods: I'm aware of the Rule 3 and this is just my life story). Ain't no long-lasting friendship, no meaningful relationships, just a hunger for constantly seek knowledge, especially dark knowledge (for instance, I have recently been diving myself into the realm of occult practices, embracing worshiping of The Dark Mother Goddess Lilith). Conspiracies were part of this seeking for knowledge some time ago.
  
  The overall human evilness is so clearly visible, and I'm well aware of it since my early age. As Hobbes said, the evil is intrinsic to the mankind, and some attribute to him the quote: "Homo homini lupus est" a.k.a. "the man is it's own wolf (predator)". World's like the worsened version of Dante's Inferno (because, differently from our world, that Inferno don't pretend not being hell), and I found out that we're powerless to our own shadows, the only solution is to hug and embrace the so-feared demons... literally.
  
  Conspiracy theories are just ways that try to detail and explain the most intricate evilness behind the curtains, but one doesn't even need to rely to conspiracy theories to see how world is not a beautiful bright fairy tale.