SPECIFIC SOCIAL FUNCTION OF RUMOURS AND CONSPIRACY THEORIES: STRENGTHENING COMMUNITY’S TIES IN TROUBLE TIMES. A MULTILEVEL ANALYSIS

• Authors: Giry Julien
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

This paper hypothesizes that conspiracy theories and rumours are an act of social conformism. The evaluation of their plausibility, and their success, is collectively determinate regarding the established values of an in-group and the social context. In periods of troubles they flourish to reaffirm themselves and strengthen community’s ties, structures and leaderships. After a theoretical introduction, the author will demonstrate this assumption through a multilevel analysis (macro, meso, micro) which considers a wide range of social situations from the French Revolution to neighbourhood conflicts and from open riots to latent crises.

Keywords

EN

RUMOURS; CONSPIRACY THEORIES; SOCIAL FUNCTIONS; SOCIAL TIES; MULTILEVEL ANALYSIS

• Publisher: Institute of Ethnology, Slovak Academy of Sciences
• Journal: Slovenský národopis (Slovak Ethnology)
• Year: 2017
• Volume: 65
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 187 – 202

Contributors

author

Giry Julien

• IDPSP, Rennes1, 5 Rue du Château de l’Horloge, 13 094 Aix-en-Provence CEDEX 2, France