Printing Press and Malleus Maleficarum Fueled Europe's Witch Hunts

The spread of witch-hunting manuals through social networks led to widespread persecution across Central Europe.

The Malleus Maleficarum, published in 1487, was a key manual that guided witch trials in Europe.
The invention of the printing press allowed for the rapid dissemination of witch-hunting ideas.
Nearly 90,000 people were prosecuted, with about 45,000 executions over 300 years of witch hunts.
Social influence and 'ideational diffusion' played roles in spreading witch trials between cities.
The study highlights parallels between historical witch hunts and modern policy adoption processes.