2nd International Conference on the Philosophy of Conspiracy Theory
VU Amsterdam – June 2 and 3, 2023 https://conspiracytheoryconference.weebly.com/

In the last decade there has been an explosion of literature on conspiracy theories in disciplines like social psychology, sociology, and philosophy. The study of conspiracy theories has raised many political, epistemological, moral, and conceptual questions, all of which deserve investigating. Rather than answering such questions through a traditional and individualistic knowledge account in epistemology, we should incorporate social perspectives, different political contexts, economic backgrounds, and so on, in our accounting of what conspiracy theories are, what makes them interesting, and what, if anything, we can say about certain kinds of belief in conspiracy theories.

This year’s 2nd International Conference on the Philosophy of Conspiracy Theory will focus on applying existing social epistemic notions or frameworks to conspiracy theory research. We want to highlight the importance of interdisciplinary research endeavors for the future of the study of conspiracy theory both for philosophers and social scientists, while at the same time avoiding reinventing the wheel by benefiting from the work that has already been done in social epistemology. Some examples of topics within the scope of this conference:

• Conspiracy theorists and standpoint epistemology
• Epistemic dependence/autonomy and conspiracy theories
• Experts and epistemic authority on conspiracy theories
• Conspiracy theory-induced polarization
• How do misinformation/fake news and conspiracy theories hang together?
• What’s the connection between echo chambers/filter bubbles and conspiracy theories?
• Conspiracy theories and epistemic injustices
• Groupthink and conspiracy communities

Keynote speakers
Catarina Dutilh Novaes (VU Amsterdam)
Steve Clarke (Charles Sturt University)
M R. X. Dentith (Beijing Normal University)

Panelists
M R. X. Dentith (Philosophy, (Beijing Normal University at Zhuhai)
Brian Keeley (Philosophy, Pitzer College in Claremont)
Maarten Boudry (Philosophy, Ghent University)
Keith Harris (Philosophy, Ruhr-Universität Bochum)
Patrick Stokes (Philosophy, Deakin University)
Jan Willem van Prooijen (Psychology, VU Amsterdam)
Jaron Harambam (Sociology, VU Amsterdam)
David Robertson (Religious Studies, Open University)

Call for abstracts:
We welcome 1000-2000 word abstracts submitted to: conspiracytheoryconference@gmail.com by March 8, 2023 at the latest.

Submissions are to be anonymized: the submission (doc., pdf,) should include the name of the paper, the abstract, and a short list of references. Please do not include your name or your university’s name; this should only appear in the accompanying email. Make sure to include any contact information you deem necessary. We encourage submissions from researchers from underrepresented groups in academia, as well as independent and junior scholars.

Notifications of acceptance will be sent before April 12th. Accepted abstracts will be invited to present their work in either a lightning talk (20 min.) or in a paper presentation (45 min.). Accepted abstracts may be invited to contribute to the publication of proceedings of the conference.

Contact:

Organizers are Julia Duetz, Melina Tsapos and M Dentith. You may contact them via mail at:  conspiracytheoryconference@gmail.com.