#22 UFO Religions, Cognitive Dissonance, and When Prophecy Fails

06/04/2025 1h 9min Episodio 22

Listen "#22 UFO Religions, Cognitive Dissonance, and When Prophecy Fails"

Episode Synopsis

Jodie and Matthew once again investigate the exciting world of alternative religious movements. This time, they talk about The Seekers, a UFO religion from the 1950’s that was convinced the world was going to end on December 21. But what they didn’t know was that a group of Sociologists and Psychologists infiltrated the group to try to understand what happens when their predictions of the end of the world fail, and they came up with one of the most famous theories in social psychology because of it: Cognitive Dissonance. Works Referenced and Recommended Readings:When Prophecy Fails: A Social and Psychological Study of a Modern Group that Predicted the Destruction of the World by Leon Festinger, Henry W. Rieken, and Stanley Schachter (1956)Follow our socials and reach out to us with thoughts or questions!Twitter/X: @TheRELTreehouseBluesky: @TheRELTreehouseInstagram: @TheReligiousTreehouseTikTok: @thereligioustreehouse Facebook: TRTEmail: [email protected]