The Psychology of Hoaxes

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It seems as though the phenomena surrounding Bigfoot, UFO's, The Loch Ness Monster, and other urban/rural legends, will never be shed from one generation to the next. Is it the lure of the unknown that drives us to believe in hoaxes? What drives others to create hoaxes? Is it our duty to prove/disprove hoaxes so that we can move on with our normal lives?

Recent events in Georgia have led many to believe that Bigfoot, despite the nay sayers, has finally been discovered. Two Bigfoot hunters, Matthew Whitton and Rick Dyer, claim to have finally found the proof that we've all been looking for that will, without a doubt, substantiate the existence of Bigfoot. Through scientific autopsy and examination, they hope to vindicate all those hunters and believers that first gained ground when the infamous photos appeared of a large creature crossing a stream of water in the wilderness. But why couldn't we just accept that Bigfoot existed when passers by, travelers, woodsmen, and any number of witnesses swore they saw the creature in the wilderness? Verbal testimony is often enough to convict a criminal of wrong doing; even enough to sentence a man to death. But when someone tells us that a UFO appeared to them, or that Nessy stuck his head out of Loch Ness, we tend to balk at their sanity and ask for proof. Even when photographic or video proof can be produced, we are bent on disproving the claim. Why? When speaking of the "hoax" that we actually landed on the moon, renowned skeptic, Michael Shermer says "we have an innate thing inside of our brain, we have a need to believe." Even deeper, we've proven that man, in general, has an innate issue with accepting one idea to be true and despite evidence to the contrary, if that idea has been rooted in his brain, belief of the idea will not be usurped by reason or proof. Until the masses turn. Distinguished psychologist and philosopher, Rom Harre said, "It is a remarkable feature of mainstream academic psychology that, alone among the sciences, it should be almost wholly immune to critical appraisal as an enterprise. Methods that have long been shown to be ineffective or worse are till used on a routine basis by hundreds, perhaps thousands of people." Why do we cling to old beliefs in one area and not in another? Why are some things easier to accept than others? To what degree do we draw the curtain on what we have to imagine to be true and what can be seen, held and examined in reality?

Perhaps it's just the thought that maybe...maybe there is the possibility of something existing other than the normal everyday around us. Isn't that why we attend movies? To escape our reality? What causes us to need that magical element in our lives? The need to reserve that modicum of space in our reality for something that might be...unreal? Not to draw a religious debate, but is the idea of faith any less fantastic than the idea of Bigfoot? One actually has the possibility of being proven. In fact, on Friday, August 14th, we may finally lay to rest one of the great mysteries. Or we may show that there are those out there that wish to deceive the masses for one reason or another.

Where do hoaxes come from? Some hoaxes are derived from myth. Some from concocted imagery and story telling. Some hoaxes or urban legends are created from misinterpretation through the years or are based on real stories. Still others from those just willing to play jokes on our gullibility. At Columbia University, a "hoax" was perpetrated by a researcher who was leading a study on the power of prayer. They claimed that through distance prayer, they could affect the lives of individuals, healing them of their sickness without their knowledge. In 2001, they announced breath-taking results when "a group of South Korean women using in vitro fertilization had double the pregnancy rate when they were prayed for by strangers around the world." However, when the university found out that it's lead researcher, Daniel Wirth, had a string of false identities, they immediately took steps to discredit the phenomenon and the work that was completed. This was not a purposeful hoax. Rather a poor choice of career moves on the researchers part. But does his previous life truly discredit the work completed at the univeristy? Or the results gained through that work?

The examples above show two sides of the hoax story. On the one hand, we have unbelievable stories that are presented by credible people, yet no one truly wants to believe what is being told to them. On the other, we have a completely credible story with measured and witnessed results, but because one man can be discredited, the entire story becomes a hoax.

This article neither tries to prove nor disprove the existence of Bigfoot, The Loch Ness monster, or other such legends. But from a psychological point of view, it is an interesting phenomenon to watch masses and even individuals sway their beliefs. Whether through hearse, reading the interpretations of others, gathering their own evidence, or just plain gut feelings. What do you think about hoaxes? Are you a believer in UFO's, Bigfoot, the Loch Ness monster? Do you think hoaxes are just conspiracies or an act of cover up for something more ominous? Share your points of view with us!