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This is the third is a series of posts this week on the psychology behind the many false 2008 U.S. Presidential election rumors in circulation. These rumors abound on both sides of the ideological spectrum: Barack Obama is a Muslim, swore his oath of allegiance on the Koran, and was trained in a terrorist training camp. Sarah Palin is Trig's grandmother, she's part of a group that wants Alaska to secede from the Union, and she tried to ban Harry Potter books from Wasilla Library. All of these rumors are false.

Why do these rumors abound?

My short answer to this question is: one part uncertainty, one part belief, and one part defensive sentiment. And possibly one part propaganda.

We've looked at the role of uncertainty and belief thus far. In this installment, we'll tackle defensive sentiment and touch upon the question of whether or not these rumors are planted.

One Part Defensive Sentiment

Rumors are sometimes used to defend oneself against a threat. The threat posed can be psychological in nature. A situation may challenge a belief, attitude, mindset, or sense of identity. Strong feelings of defensiveness can be called forth when we-or groups that we identify with-are criticized or derogated; we can feel very threatened indeed. Rumors can neutralize such threats, for example, by denigrating the source of the challenge or by bolstering our own position, cause, or group.

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This week I'm exploring the rumor psychology surrounding the phenomenal rumors that surround the 2008 U.S. Presidential elections. The most common of these is that Barack Obama is a Muslim and Sarah Palin is Trig's grandmother. What it is that drives these, and the many other, false and fantastic rumors?

My short answer is: one part uncertainty, one part belief, and one part defensive sentiment. And possibly one part propaganda. In the first post I explored how these rumors capitalize on uncertainty. Today, let's explore the role of belief.

One-part Belief

People tend to be more likely to spread rumors that they believe as compared with those they don't believe. But the interesting thing here is that belief depends in part on your already-held attitudes. People tend to believe rumors that agree with their own point of view.

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The 2008 election has seen a plethora of false, derogatory and damaging rumors. Some of the most common falsehoods: Barack Obama is a Muslim. Sarah Palin is Trig's grandmother. John McCain had an affair with an attractive lobbyist.

My hoaxbuster site friends tell me that tales about Senator Obama-that he refuses to pledge allegiance to the flag, swore his oath of office on a Koran, was trained in a terrorist camp, and receives major funding from Arabs-far outnumbered those targeting other politicians. That is, until Sarah Palin stepped on the national stage.

Since then we have witnessed an explosion of rumors about Governor Palin-some of which were fueled by premature stories in major newspapers: she's part of a group that wants Alaska to secede from the Union, she tried to ban Harry Potter books from Wasilla Library, she pushed for creationism to be part of the high school science curriculum in Alaska, and she called Obama "Sambo." All false.

What can explain the prevalence of these rumors? I'd like to focus on one answer to that question in this post, and apply some of the rumor psychology I explored in The Watercooler Effect.

The short answer is: one part uncertainty, one part belief, and one part defensive sentiment. And possibly one part propaganda. Today let's tackle uncertainty.

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Nicholas DiFonzo is our guest blogger during the week of September 15th. If you have any questions for Nicholas DiFonzo, add a comment to any of his posts. Here is some more information about The Watercooler Effect: A Psychologist Explores the Extraordinary Power of Rumors: