Rumor
For some people the starting or spreading of rumor may be considered defensive behavior. Rumors may be started deliberately for political ends or they may be intentionally inspired, serving competitive need to build one's own ego. Rumors tend to flow best horizontally, and they spread more widely when they are ambiguous. Knowledgeable people are less likely than the uninformed to transmit rumors, particularly in a crisis situation. Errors in relaying rumors are in the direction of what one expects to hear rather than what one actually hears. This relates to the factor of set in perception, where the perceiver selects certain aspects of the environment and ignol'es others. There is a tendency for the person with a "high crisis quotient" to like rumors, particularly those that relate to negatiye things about groups or organizations. Rumor is also fostered by expectation.
