Conspiracy theories are popular
Photo: The Canadian Press
Bill Gates
A recent survey found that a large percentage of Canadians believe in a number of conspiracy theories.
The Abacus Data poll, released on Sunday, surveyed 1,500 Canadians between May 20 and 24, and found that 44% of respondents believe that “major events such as wars, recessions and the aftermath of elections are controlled by small groups of people who work secretly against us. ” ”
The survey also found that 37% of respondents believe that “there is a group of people in this country who are trying to replace native Canadians with immigrants who agree with their political views,” while 13% He said they believe it is true or probably true that Microsoft Founder Bill Gates is using “microchips to track and affect human behavior.”
The poll also found that belief in these theories is highest among supporters of the People’s Party of Canada, those who have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 and those who think the media and official stories of the government of events can not be trusted.
“Perhaps the most puzzling of these figures is the fact that distrust of institutional accounts is not simply neutral skepticism, but is often accompanied by a willingness to believe in dangerous theories to the contrary,” write the authors of the Bruce reports. Anderson and David Coletto.
“This threatens to undermine the ability of political parties, businesses, civil society groups and governments to help build consensus and move forward together.”
Abacus reports the margin of error of the survey +/- 2.53%, 19 times out of 20. The data were weighted according to census data to ensure that the sample matched the population of Canada according to the age, gender, educational level and region.