Logik und Leistungsfähigkeit des Verschwörungsweltbildes

The key feature of the conspiracy worldview is that it explains the complex social reality of modern societies in terms of the logic of action and traces it back to an omnipotent center of action, its hidden intentions and the resulting manipulative strategies. Social conflicts, inconsistencies, and contradictions are located at the level of illusion and identified as diversionary and confusing maneuvers that merely conceal a yet “more real” reality. Conspiracy thinking intensifies when complexity infiltrates people’s everyday lives in the aftermath of crises. It can be interpreted as a backward-looking attempt of cognitive defense against the complexity of modernity. Against this backdrop, the article analyses the central motifs of digital conspiracy publishing in recent years, which have gained significant popularity due to the international financial crisis, ongoing migration to Europe, the COVID pandemic, and the Ukraine conflict. It becomes evident that the conspiracy worldview, along with its characteristic “simple thinking”, provides an absurd yet largely coherent interpretation of reality. As a result, it becomes clear how the logic, efficacy, and consequences of the conspiracy worldview systematically interrelate as they mutually consolidate and catalyze each other.