Ted George Goertzel (born November 20, 1942) is an emeritus professor in the

Sociology Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociol ...

Department at

Rutgers University–Camden Rutgers University–Camden is one of three regional campuses of Rutgers University, a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. It is located in Camden, New Jersey. Founded in 1926 as the South Jersey Law ...

. He is the author and co-author of books and articles spanning from social economy, politics, and conspiracy theories. He is the father of

Ben Goertzel Ben Goertzel is a computer scientist, artificial intelligence researcher, and businessman. He helped popularize the term artificial general intelligence. Early life and education Three of Goertzel's Jewish great-grandparents immigrated to New Yo ...

, with whom he co-authored the 1995 book ''

Linus Pauling Linus Carl Pauling ( ; February 28, 1901August 19, 1994) was an American chemist and peace activist. He published more than 1,200 papers and books, of which about 850 dealt with scientific topics. ''New Scientist'' called him one of the 20 gre ...

: A Life in Science and Politics.''

Conspiracy theories

As a social scientist, Goertzel studied conspiracy theories and conspiracy thinking in depth. One of his first studies on the subject started in 1992 with a telephone survey of 348 randomly chosen residents in southwestern New Jersey. The survey was of 10 conspiracy theories circulating at that time. He concluded that

anomie In sociology, anomie or anomy () is a social condition defined by an uprooting or breakdown of any moral values, standards or guidance for individuals to follow. Anomie is believed to possibly evolve from conflict of belief systems and causes b ...

, insecurity, and lack of trust in people are positively correlated to conspiratorial thinking. Moreover, people who believe in a conspiracy theory are more likely to believe in more than one. He is therefore considered an expert on rumors, including the Zika conspiracy theories, ebola, and Moon landing conspiracies.

Books

* ''Brazil’s Lula: Rise and Fall of an Icon''. Amazon Kindle Books 2018. * ''Presidential Leadership in the Americas Since Independence'', by Guy Burton and Ted Goertzel. Lexington Publishers, October 2016 * ''The End of the Beginning: Life, Society and Economy on the Brink of the Singularity''.

and Ted Goertzel, editors. Kindle Books 2014 * ''The Drama of Brazilian Politics: From 1814-2015''. Ted Goertzel and Paulo Roberto de Almeida, editors. * ''Brazil's Lula: The Most Popular Politician on Earth''. Brown Walker Publishers, 2011. * ''Cradles of Eminence'': Second Edition. Scottsdale, Arizona: Great Potential Press, 2003. By Victor and Mildred Goertzel, updated by Ted George Goertzel and Ariel M.W. Hansen. * ''Fernando Henrique Cardoso: Reinventing Democracy in Brazil''. Boulder: Lynne Rienner, 1999. * ''Linus Pauling: A Life in Science and Politics.'' With

, Mildred Goertzel and Victor Goertzel. New York: Basic Books, 1995. * ''Turncoats and True Believers: The Dynamics of Political Belief and Disillusionment''. Buffalo: Prometheus Press, 1992. * ''Sociology: Class, Consciousness and Contradictions.'' With Albert Szymanski. New York: D. VanNostrand, 1979. * ''Three Hundred Eminent Personalities: A Psychosocial Analysis of the Famous''. With Ariel Felton, Mildred Goertzel and Victor Goertzel. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1978. * ''Political Society.'' Chicago: Rand McNally, 1976.

References

External links

Goertzel's Faculty Page
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Goertzel, Ted George 1942 births Living people American sociologists Antioch College alumni Washington University in St. Louis alumni Rutgers University–Camden faculty