THREAD on conspiracy theories & attachment.
I keep seeing frustrated social media posts asking why people believe conspiracy theories. Answer: It gives a sense of control - includng belonging, predictability & safety. It's emotional regulation. Here's research to unpack that.

2. "Participants with an 'ambivalent attachment style' were more likely to believe in conspiracy theories....The findings add further evidence that attachment not only influences how a person interacts with others, but also influences world views." 2018
https://t.co/JA0tpgJnM8
3. "People have a strong need to feel positive abt the groups they belong, such as their nationality, political party & religious group. A conviction that others conspire against one's group is more likely to emerge when the group feels undervalued." 2019 https://t.co/TsHQpRbYVk
4. "Conspiracy theories are consequential as they have a real impact on people's health, relationships, and safety. They are emotional given that negative emotions and not rational deliberations cause conspiracy beliefs." https://t.co/xKE63sQByq
5. "Ostracized participants were more likely to endorse conspiracy beliefs related to political issues. Moreover, heightened vulnerability mediated the link between ostracism and conspiracy beliefs." https://t.co/pnYeI5UQOu
6. "We anticipated that an avoidant style, because of its emphasis on self-reliance, its motivation to suppress psychological distress, and a view of the world based on a distinction between good and bad, would be associated w/ conspiracy ideation." https://t.co/G2J20jXBAW
7. I'm not saying the answers are all sorted. Explaining belief in conspiracy theories is an issue still under debate & discovery. Here's a study that found no association w/ control (although I think their conceptual frame was too limited). https://t.co/f1y6X5kLvR
8. My key aim in this thread is simply to try to stem the tendency of frustrated people to say 'who are these crazy conspiracy supporters?' They aren't crazy. They are trying to make sense of & operate in the world. Conspiracy is a functional choice, even if it is often harmful.
9. CURIOSITY abt why 'other people' do things that make no sense to us is part of being trauma-informed. It is part of creatng solutions to problems, both big &small. Curiosity gives us a starting point we might otherwise miss. And we hv some big problems to solve in ths world.
10. And if @KamalaHarris or @JoeBiden asked me what I thought would help in the USA right now? I'd recommend lots of listening. "Offering ostracized participants an opportunity to reaffirm values important to them cd reduce political conspiracy beliefs." https://t.co/pnYeI5UQOu
11/end. When t world feels confusng, scary, discountng, unpredictable? Of course yr emotional regulation, attachmnt system kicks in. Recognisng this helps devise solutions. We need equality &value &purpose in human lives. If we are determind, COVID can be t spark to nurture that.

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@Suman68082748 @thetwinkwolff @x_karran_x @Sunil9130 Lets stop the criticism guys. The lad is good. Losses happen. Losses to unranked players happen too. As do wins vs top 10ers. Let's accept both. Remember Sumit and the likes of him are the best we have. See the bigger picture please.

@thetwinkwolff @x_karran_x @Sunil9130 When the Europeans or South Americans were getting quality practice and tourneys week in week out at reasonable costs, our kids were playing on dung courts or learning outdated serve and volley on grass. Appreciate the fact that the last 10 years have been a hell lot better than

@thetwinkwolff @x_karran_x @Sunil9130 the 10 before that. Real change can't come in a day or even in 10 years. So let's grit our teeth and bide our time till we have an organic self sustaining system in place.

@siyer30 @SportaSmile @Cric_Writer @RomilShukla @amanthejourno

@thetwinkwolff @x_karran_x @Sunil9130 @siyer30 @SportaSmile @Cric_Writer @RomilShukla @amanthejourno Tennis is my favourite sport in the universe. Has always been. Will always be. I was in love with Steffi and Pete a lot before I fell for Sachin. And while I would love every toddler in my family to play sports professionally, I won't encourage them to pursue my favourite sport.

@thetwinkwolff @x_karran_x @Sunil9130 @siyer30 @SportaSmile @Cric_Writer @RomilShukla @amanthejourno It will be career suicide. In other sports, I can actually plan for my ward to be the next Lin Dan or the next Tiger Woods or the next Schumacher even from a base in India. With tennis, in 2020 I can't do that realistically. Just doesn't adds up. Even for total freaks of nature.

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Recently, the @CNIL issued a decision regarding the GDPR compliance of an unknown French adtech company named "Vectaury". It may seem like small fry, but the decision has potential wide-ranging impacts for Google, the IAB framework, and today's adtech. It's thread time! 👇

It's all in French, but if you're up for it you can read:
• Their blog post (lacks the most interesting details):
https://t.co/PHkDcOT1hy
• Their high-level legal decision: https://t.co/hwpiEvjodt
• The full notification: https://t.co/QQB7rfynha

I've read it so you needn't!

Vectaury was collecting geolocation data in order to create profiles (eg. people who often go to this or that type of shop) so as to power ad targeting. They operate through embedded SDKs and ad bidding, making them invisible to users.

The @CNIL notes that profiling based off of geolocation presents particular risks since it reveals people's movements and habits. As risky, the processing requires consent — this will be the heart of their assessment.

Interesting point: they justify the decision in part because of how many people COULD be targeted in this way (rather than how many have — though they note that too). Because it's on a phone, and many have phones, it is considered large-scale processing no matter what.