I too am in a deep dive with this subject. Part of my current thesis focuses on how cognitive biases get high jacked and then leveraged for a variety of reasons. The problem with the psy component is that it is such a universally experienced phenomenon that it is easily swept into the narrative. Most people go about their days never checking their biases let alone setting up safety nets of any kind to help guard against being high jacked or manipulated. BTW, a lot of your “essay” can be applied to religious narratives as well.