Van Prooijen, J.-W., & Van Lange, P. A. M. (Eds.) (2014). Power, politics, and paranoia: Why people are suspicious of their leaders. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Brief abstract:
Powerful societal leaders—such as politicians and CEOs—are frequently approached with substantial distrust and suspiciousness by the public. Why are people so suspicious of their leaders? One possibility is that “power corrupts”, and that people are right to be suspicious. Indeed, there are examples abound of unethical leadership even at the highest level, as the Watergate scandal and the Enron CEOs illustrate. But another possibility is that people frequently are unjustifiably paranoid, as underscored by some of the rather far-fetched conspiracy beliefs that are endorsed by a surprisingly large portion of citizens. Are societal power holders more likely than the average citizen to display unethical behaviour? How do people generally think and feel about politicians? How do paranoia and conspiracy beliefs about societal power holders originate? In this book, prominent scholars address these intriguing questions, and illuminate the many facets of the relations between power, politics, and paranoia.
Overview of Contents:
Preface
Chapter 1 – Power, Politics, and Paranoia: An Introduction
Jan-Willem van Prooijen and Paul A. M. van Lange
Part 1 – Power
Chapter 2 – The Effects of Power on Immorality
Joris Lammers and Ilja van Beest
Chapter 3 – Do We Give Power to the Right People? When and How Norm Violators Rise to the Top
Eftychia Stamkou and Gerben van Kleef
Chapter 4 – The Leaders’ Rosy Halo: Why Do We Give Powerholders the Benefit of the Doubt?
Pamela K. Smith and Jennifer R. Overbeck
Chapter 5 – “Power Corrupts” Revisited: The Role of Construal of Power as Opportunity or Responsibility
Kai Sassenberg, Naomi Ellemers, Daan Scheepers, and Annika Scholl
Part 2 – Politics
Chapter 6 – Never Trust a Politician? Collective Distrust, Relational Accountability, and Voter Response
Susan T. Fiske and Federica Durante
Chapter 7 – Political Distrust: The Seed and Fruit of Popular Empowerment
Fouad Bou Zeineddine and Felicia Pratto
Chapter 8 – All Power to Our Great Leader: Political Leadership under Uncertainty
John J. Haller and Michael A. Hogg
Chapter 9 – Those Who Supported and Voted for Berlusconi. A Social-Psychological Profile of the Willing Followers of a Controversial Political Leader
Antonio Chirumbolo and Luigi Leone
Chapter 10 – A Growing Confidence Gap in Politics? Data versus Discourse
Rudy B. Andeweg
Part 3 – Paranoia
Chapter 11 – Misconnecting the Dots: Origins and Dynamics of Outgroup Paranoia
Roderick M. Kramer and Jennifer Schaffer
Chapter 12 – Political Paranoia and Conspiracy Theories
Viren Swami and Adrian Furnham
Chapter 13 – The Social Dimension of Belief in Conspiracy Theories
Jan-Willem van Prooijen and Paul A. M. van Lange
Chapter 14 – Examining the Monological Nature of Conspiracy Theories
Robbie M. Sutton and Karen M. Douglas
Chapter 15 – The Role of Paranoia in a Dual-Process Motivational Model of Conspiracy Belief
Marc Wilson, Ronald Fischer, and Chelsea Rose
Chapter 16 – Searching for the Root of all Evil: An Existential-Sociological Perspective
on Political Enemyship and Scapegoating
Daniel Sullivan, Mark J. Landau, Zachary K. Rothschild, and Lucas A. Keefer
