Editing Conspiracy theory (section)

===Backfire effects===
It has been suggested that directly countering [[misinformation]] can be counterproductive. For example, since conspiracy theories can reinterpret disconfirming information as part of their narrative, refuting a claim can result in accidentally reinforcing it,<ref name="Brotherton2013"/><ref name="SciAm2019"/> which is referred to as a "backfire effect".<ref name="Swire-Thompson2020"/> In addition, publishing criticism of conspiracy theories can result in legitimizing them.<ref name="Jolley2013"/> In this context, possible interventions include carefully selecting which conspiracy theories to refute, requesting additional analyses from independent observers, and introducing cognitive diversity into conspiratorial communities by undermining their poor epistemology.<ref name="Jolley2013"/> Any legitimization effect might also be reduced by responding to more conspiracy theories rather than fewer.<ref name="SunsteinVermeule2009">{{cite journal|last1=Sunstein|first1=Cass R.|last2=Vermeule|first2=Adrian|title=Conspiracy Theories: Causes and Cures|journal=Journal of Political Philosophy|volume=17|issue=2|year=2009|pages=202–227|doi=10.1111/j.1467-9760.2008.00325.x|s2cid=48880069}}</ref>

There are psychological mechanisms by which backfire effects could potentially occur, but the evidence on this topic is mixed, and backfire effects are very rare in practice.<ref name="LazicZezelj2021"/><ref name="Swire-Thompson2020"/><ref name="Nyhan2021"/> A 2020 review of the scientific literature on backfire effects found that there have been widespread [[Replication crisis|failures to replicate]] their existence, even under conditions that would be theoretically favorable to observing them.<ref name="Swire-Thompson2020">{{cite journal|author=Swire-Thompson B, DeGutis J, Lazer D|title=Searching for the Backfire Effect: Measurement and Design Considerations.|journal=J Appl Res Mem Cogn|year=2020|volume=9|issue=3|pages=286–299|pmid=32905023|doi=10.1016/j.jarmac.2020.06.006|pmc=7462781}}</ref> Due to the lack of [[reproducibility]], {{as of|2020|lc=y}} most researchers believe that backfire effects are either unlikely to occur on the broader population level, or they only occur in very specific circumstances, or they do not exist.<ref name="Swire-Thompson2020"/> Brendan Nyhan, one of the researchers who initially proposed the occurrence of backfire effects, wrote in 2021 that the persistence of misinformation is most likely due to other factors.<ref name="Nyhan2021">{{cite journal|author=Nyhan B|title=Why the backfire effect does not explain the durability of political misperceptions.|journal=Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A|year=2021|volume=118|issue=15|pmid=33837144|doi=10.1073/pnas.1912440117|doi-access=free|pmc=8053951|bibcode=2021PNAS..11812440N}}</ref>

In general, people do reject conspiracy theories when they learn about their contradictions and lack of evidence.<ref name="Andrade2020"/> For most people, corrections and fact-checking are very unlikely to have a negative impact, and there is no specific group of people in which backfire effects have been consistently observed.<ref name="Swire-Thompson2020"/> Presenting people with factual corrections, or highlighting the logical contradictions in conspiracy theories, has been demonstrated to have a positive effect in many circumstances.<ref name="van ProoijenDouglas2018"/><ref name="SciAm2019"/> For example, this has been studied in the case of informing believers in [[9/11 conspiracy theories]] about statements by actual experts and witnesses.<ref name="van ProoijenDouglas2018"/> One possibility is that criticism is most likely to backfire if it challenges someone's worldview or identity. This suggests that an effective approach may be to provide criticism while avoiding such challenges.<ref name="SciAm2019">{{Cite web|title=People Drawn to Conspiracy Theories Share a Cluster of Psychological Features|last=Moyer|first=Melinda Wenner|work=Scientific American|date=1 March 2019|access-date=16 October 2020|url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/people-drawn-to-conspiracy-theories-share-a-cluster-of-psychological-features/}}</ref>