How Conspiracy Thinking Shapes Our Views of Inequality: The Curious Case of the Tsocutas and Thelawys

Wednesday, March 12, 2025.

A fresh study in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin has added another wrinkle to our understanding of conspiracy beliefs: they don’t just make people paranoid about shadowy elites controlling the world—they also shift how they interpret social inequalities.

It turns out that when folks buy into conspiracy thinking, they are less likely to blame disadvantaged groups for their struggles and more inclined to see the wealthy and powerful as, well, up to something.

This research complicates the usual hand-wringing over conspiracy theories.

While conspiracy beliefs have been linked to irrational thinking, political extremism, and even public health skepticism (Douglas et al., 2017), this study suggests they might also serve a peculiar function: challenging the American idea that success and failure are purely based on individual merit.

In other words, conspiracy theorists may not just be tinfoil-hat-wearing contrarians—they might also be (accidentally?) questioning the myth of meritocracy.

Why Are Conspiracy Beliefs More Common Among the Disadvantaged?

Psychologists have long noted that people from lower-income backgrounds, ethnic minorities, and those with less formal education are more likely to endorse conspiracy theories (Van Prooijen, 2017).

But why? Is it just a coping mechanism? A way to make sense of their struggles? Or do these beliefs actively shape how they view the social order?

To find out, researchers ran five studies to examine how a general belief in conspiracies influences perceptions of social inequality.

The first study, conducted in France, surveyed over a thousand people, measuring their belief in conspiracies, their attitudes toward meritocracy (the notion that success comes from talent and hard work), and their perceptions of both high-status and low-status groups. Researchers also asked participants to self-identify their socioeconomic status.

The next four studies took a different approach. Instead of using real-world inequalities (too messy, too many moving parts), they crafted a fictional society called Vlurville—a place where participants could imagine themselves as members of the disadvantaged “Tsocutas” while another group, the “Thelawys,” enjoyed privilege and power.

Then, researchers played puppet master.

Some participants were given descriptions of Vlurville that painted it as a society rife with secretive elites conspiring behind the scenes. Others were told it was a transparent, fair place with no shady dealings. The idea was to see if conspiracy beliefs could be experimentally induced—and if those beliefs would change how people saw inequality.

The Results: Meritocracy Takes a Hit, and the Wealthy Get the Side-Eye

The findings were revealing.

• Conspiracy Believers Reject Meritocracy
  In the first study, people with a stronger tendency toward conspiracy thinking were less likely to believe in meritocracy. They were also more likely to identify as being in a lower socioeconomic group. However, this didn’t directly translate into more positive attitudes toward disadvantaged groups or more negative attitudes toward elites—at least, not in this real-world sample.

• When Conspiracies Were Introduced, Meritocracy Crumbled
  In the fictional Vlurville studies, participants who were primed to see the society as controlled by secret elites became much more skeptical of meritocracy. They no longer believed that the wealth and power of the Thelawys was earned, nor that the struggles of the Tsocutas were the result of laziness or lack of talent.

• Conspiracy Thinking Turns People Against the Privileged, Not Necessarily Toward the Disadvantaged
  The major shift wasn’t in sympathy for the underprivileged, but in resentment toward the wealthy and powerful. Participants in the high-conspiracy condition showed significantly more negative attitudes toward the privileged Thelawys, but only weak and inconsistent signs of greater warmth toward their own disadvantaged group.

This suggests that conspiracy beliefs may function more as a critique of the powerful than as a unifying force for the marginalized. They erode faith in the fairness of the system, but they don’t necessarily boost solidarity among the disadvantaged.

How This Connects to Other Research on Conspiracy Thinking and Psychological Needs

This study dovetails with growing research on how unmet psychological needs—such as feelings of powerlessness and exclusion—fuel conspiracy beliefs (Lantian et al., 2017; Albath et al., 2024). If people feel they have little control over their lives, they are more likely to turn to conspiracy theories as a way of making sense of their situation.

The Albath et al. (2024) study found that when people experience a decline in their sense of control or belonging, they are more likely to develop conspiracy beliefs. This aligns with the current study’s finding that conspiracy thinking tends to be higher among lower socioeconomic groups—who, by definition, experience less control over their circumstances.

Moreover, the new research extends these findings by showing that conspiracy beliefs don’t just stem from powerlessness—they actively reshape how people interpret inequality. Instead of believing the rich and powerful deserve their position, conspiracy thinkers are more likely to see them as manipulators, beneficiaries of a rigged system.

Unexpected Finding: Meaning in Life Also Fuels Conspiratorial Thinking

In a strange twist, the Albath et al. (2024) study also found that a temporary increase in meaning in life was linked to greater belief in conspiracies the following year.

This suggests that conspiracy theories might not just be a refuge for the disillusioned but could also provide a sense of purpose for those who see themselves as truth-seekers exposing injustice.

This fits surprisingly well with the new study. If believing in conspiracies makes people reject the idea that success is purely about effort and talent, it might also give them a moral mission—a way to explain inequality and expose the villains behind it.

Implications: Are Conspiracy Theories Just “Populism for the Powerless”?

These findings complicate the usual debates about conspiracy thinking.

• On one hand, conspiracy beliefs can clearly lead people away from reality, making them vulnerable to disinformation and extreme ideologies.

• On the other hand, they can also serve as a critique of a system that actually is unequal. Research on economic inequality suggests that meritocracy is often a myth (Mijs, 2021), and this study suggests that conspiracy thinkers may be among the first to reject that myth—though they may do so in ways that are, shall we say, less than academically rigorous.

If conspiracy beliefs increase during times of societal crisis (Van Prooijen & Douglas, 2017), it might not just be because people are anxious—it might also be because they are looking for an alternative explanation for why things are so unfair.

Conspiracies as a Lens, Not Just a Delusion

This study, combined with previous research, suggests that conspiracy thinking is more than just a cognitive glitch—it’s a reaction to deep-seated psychological and social forces.

• When people feel powerless or excluded, they turn to conspiracy theories.

• When they adopt conspiracy beliefs, they reject meritocracy.

• Instead of boosting solidarity, these beliefs primarily increase resentment toward the powerful.

So, while conspiracy theories often lead people into bizarre and factually dubious territory, they also reveal something important: that faith in the fairness of the system is fragile—and perhaps, in some cases, misplaced.

And if that feels unsettling, well, maybe that’s exactly what they want you to think!

Be Well, Stay Kind, and Godspeed.

REFERENCES:

Albath, E. A., Greifeneder, R., Douglas, K. M., Cichocka, A., Marques, M. D., Wilson, M. S., Kerr, J. R., Sibley, C. G., & Osborne, D. (2024). Does lower psychological need satisfaction foster conspiracy belief? Longitudinal effects over 3 years in New Zealand. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin.

Douglas, K. M., Sutton, R. M., & Cichocka, A. (2017). The psychology of conspiracy theories. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 26(6), 538-542.

Lantian, A., Muller, D., Nurra, C., & Douglas, K. M. (2017). "I know things they don’t know!" The role of need for uniqueness in belief in conspiracy theories. Social Psychology, 48(3), 160-173.

Mijs, J. B. (2021). The paradox of inequality: Income inequality and belief in meritocracy go hand in hand. Socio-Economic Review, 19(1), 7-35.

Van Prooijen, J. W., & Douglas, K. M. (2017). Conspiracy theories as part of history: The role of societal crisis situations. Memory Studies, 10(3), 323-333.