This article highlights the work of Grace Ma, a speaker at our 2025 Annual APS Member Symposium, 16-18 May on the Gold Coast.
In summary:
- Cognitive inflexibility heightens people's susceptibility to believing in conspiracy theories, and research shows that narcissists are prone to these beliefs.
- Provisional psychologist Grace Ma is researching the link between vulnerable narcissism and conspiratorial beliefs.
- By exploring social drivers, she believes that psychologists can respond to their clients with targeted, preventative strategies.
- Fostering healthy connections to satisfy clients' needs for uniqueness can support intervention.
- But it’s not only up to psychologists. Governments and society have a responsibility to educate and support our communities with targeted initiatives.
From the moon landing to the alleged kidnapping of former Australian prime minister Harold Holt, the world isn't short of conspiracy theories, and people who choose to promote them. So why are some individuals more drawn to conspiratorial thinking, and how can psychologists intervene?
Despite being perceived as a modern phenomenon, conspiracy theories have existed for centuries. Recent theories appear to be particularly dangerous, used to incite anger or division, disrupt social cohesion and undermine trust in governments and authorities.
Today’s algorithm-driven social media landscape only amplifies these theories, creating echo chambers that are catered to shortened attention spans and oversimplified concepts or ideas.
Provisional psychologist Grace Ma, who is talking at our upcoming member symposium, is fascinated by the psychological reasons people are drawn to conspiracy theories, and how clinical interventions may be able to address the underlying motivators.
"Conspiracy theories have become an even bigger concern in recent years, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic when we saw a massive surge in misinformation around vaccines and public health measures, and pushback against government responses," she says.
Psychological motivation over belief
Psychological research has long sought to unpack why people are drawn towards conspiracy theories.
Ma says it's not simply that they're misinformed.
"When you correct someone who's misinformed, they tend to say. 'Oh, I didn't know that, I'll take that on board'. You can correct their beliefs.”
"However, those who believe in conspiracy theories will reject contradicting information and find multiple ways to tell you that your information is wrong," she says.
The reasons people choose to believe in conspiracy theories often have little to do with the theories themselves.
"These beliefs are designed to be unfalsifiable. So the question is not whether or not the belief is actually true, but what motivates someone to believe it."
Vulnerable narcissism and the need to belong
We know that cognitive inflexibility — or seeing the world in black and white — heightens people's susceptibility to believe in conspiracy theories.
Research also shows that narcissists are prone to these beliefs.
Ma is exploring a type of narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) whose link to conspiracy theorising is less researched: vulnerable narcissism.
Unlike narcissists who display grandiose tendencies — who tend to be confident, have a sense of superiority and react to challenges with anger — vulnerable narcissists are covert and struggle with insecurity and shame.
"They still have this inflated sense of self-importance, but it's dependent on external validation. They tend to be hypersensitive, insecure and socially withdrawn because of how fragile their ego is," says Ma.
Instead of openly boasting, they might see themselves as "misunderstood geniuses or persecuted", she adds.
Both narcissistic types like to feel unique and superior, so they delight in conspiracy theories that make them feel more intelligent than others, or in possession of 'hidden truths'.
But because vulnerable narcissists require external validation, unlike those who display grandiose tendencies, they are also driven by another social need: to belong.
This motivation is less researched within the context of conspiracy beliefs, and Ma's study aims to merge the concepts of vulnerable narcissism and the need for uniqueness and belonging.
"I hypothesised conspiracy theories to be quite appealing to vulnerable narcissists because there's this potential of a tight-knit community where you have continuous external validation plus incredibly low chances of being socially challenged."
Surprising results
Ma's cross-sectional study of 371 US adults linked vulnerable narcissism with both a desire for uniqueness and belonging.
However, while the need for uniqueness significantly predicted conspiracy beliefs, the need for belonging did not.
In her thesis, 'Vulnerable Narcissism and Social Motivations for Conspiracy Belief', Ma says the findings that vulnerable narcissists' desire to feel special predicted conspiracy belief was expected. But she was surprised to find that their need for belonging had little impact.
Further research is needed, but Ma suggests one reason could be that people who believe in conspiracies often inhabit "niche or contrarian communities" that reject mainstream narratives and social conformity.
"This might mean that vulnerable narcissists may find community in more conventional settings," she says.
Ma adds that her study's generic conspiracy belief scale excluded very extreme political or ideological conspiracies, where belonging might play a more significant role.
Clinical interventions
Prevention can often be more impactful than intervention. Governments and society are responsible for reducing people's susceptibility to conspiracy theories through education that promotes critical thinking and media literacy, and initiatives that target isolation, given loneliness is strongly linked to a conspiracy mindset.
To date, clinical interventions to block belief in conspiracies have had limited success.
"Once someone believes in a conspiracy theory, it is very, very difficult to change their mind," says Ma.
Reducing narcissistic tendencies can also be difficult, because many narcissists can lack insight and motivation to change.
Approaching these individuals and their ideas with understanding and curiosity gives you a better chance of helping people entangled in these harmful theories. - Grace Ma
Although Ma's study doesn't look at clinical implications, she suggests interventions could focus on fostering healthy connections to satisfy needs for uniqueness, reducing the need of vulnerable narcissists to engage in online conspiracy groups.
"If therapy could meet the psychological needs that drive conspiracy thinking, such as validation or belonging, it might loosen the belief's grip," says Ma.
Of course, telling conspiracy believers that they're wrong never works, she adds — and often reinforces their beliefs.
"Approaching these individuals and their ideas with understanding and curiosity gives you a better chance of helping people entangled in these harmful theories," adds Ma.
"Conspiracy beliefs are fulfilling real psychological needs. They don't exist in a vacuum."
Grace Ma will be speaking at our 2025 Annual APS Member Symposium which takes place 16-18 May 2025 on the Gold Coast, Queensland. For more information or to buy a ticket, click here.