Can One Fake News Story Change Your Behavior?

New experiments pinch thousands of participants uncover that one-off misinformation seldom shifts real-world actions, isolated from perchance erstwhile authorities is involved.

Study: Evaluating real-world effects of one-off clone news exposure. Image credit: Song_about_summer/Shutterstock.com

In a caller study published successful Scientific Reports, researchers conducted a multi-part study to analyse nan impacts of a azygous "fake-news" (misinformation) vulnerability connected some governmental and non-political actions (behaviors). The three-part research exposed participants (n = 2,397) to fabricated news stories (food contamination) and measured their behavioral responses.

Study findings revealed that, contrary to celebrated belief, one-off misinformation had mostly minimal effects connected participants' consequent attitudes aliases behaviors, pinch 1 notable objection successful governmental petition signing, challenging nan communal presumption that isolated encounters pinch misinformation are capable drivers of behavioral modification.

Background

Social media's accelerated maturation successful caller years has justifiably heightened fears astir these platforms' imaginable to style everything from wellness choices to predetermination outcomes and nan persistent threat of misinformation exposure. High-profile examples, for illustration nan crisp simplification successful measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccinations pursuing mendacious reports of a nexus to autism, look to corroborate that clone news tin person dramatic, real-world consequences.

These reports person led to a prevalent worldview that "fake news" tin person important and lasting consequences sloppy of exposure. Critiques reason that population-level events for illustration MMR vaccination declines are often tied to sustained, wide movements, wherever individuals are exposed to immense amounts of misinformation from aggregate sources complete time.

Unfortunately, nan weighted impacts of vulnerability (intensity, frequency, aliases duration) person seldom been formally investigated, and we still don't conclusively cognize whether a single, one-off vulnerability to a portion of clone news tin person a direct, one-to-one effect connected an individual's behavior. Understanding differences betwixt these vastly much prevalent 'one-off' exposures would thief guideline early nationalist argumentation crossed each fields, from authorities to nutrition.

About nan study

The coming study intends to reside this knowledge spread by leveraging nan results of 3 separately preregistered, well-powered quality behavioral experiments (Study 1, 2, and 3) designed to trial nan nonstop behavioral effect of azygous clone news exposures.

Study 1 comprised a cohort of 2,397 big participants (age = 18+) who were required to complete an online study wherever they were randomly assigned and provided misinformation astir almonds (case cohort 1), cashews (case cohort 2), aliases nary misinformation (control cohort). The study was designed successful a 2 x 2 x 2 manner (misinformation vs. power x seed type x pre/post time). Participants successful nan misinformation group saw 1 fabricated communicative (about spider ovum contamination) alongside respective existent stories, while power participants saw only existent stories.  

A subset of 143 participants was physically brought into a laboratory, astir a week later (one to 3 weeks), for what they were told was a "taste test." They were near unsocial successful a room pinch bowls of almonds, cashews, and different snacks, and their depletion was covertly measured, thereby allowing for an appraisal of their post-misinformation behaviors.

Study 2 intimately replicated nan online information of Study 1 (n = 417) but altered nan misinformation provided (e.g., fungal aliases bacterial contamination of seed bags successful spot of spider eggs) to guarantee that Study 1 outcomes were not circumstantial to nan misinformation's content.

Study 3 leveraged a akin methodology arsenic Studies 1 and 2, but replaced nutrient (herein nuts) pinch governmental (specifically environmental) considerations. Participants (n = 413) were exposed to clone news stories that were either skeptical of aliases supportive of ambiance alteration action.

Study findings

The coming study reveals that, crossed each studies, nan impacts of a azygous lawsuit of clone news vulnerability were recovered to beryllium anemic aliases inconsistent and insufficient successful astir cases to change subordinate behaviour measurably.

In Study 1, participants who publication nan "spider eggs" communicative did not alteration their attitudes toward nan targeted seed aliases eat little of it successful nan laboratory sensation test. Instead, nan results provided beardown statistical grounds successful favour of nan preregistered null hypothesis, suggesting nary effect. Study 2 confirmed these effects and showed accordant results sloppy of nan misinformation content.

The outcomes of Study 3 were mostly consistent, albeit pinch much nuances. Exposure to climate-skeptical misinformation was observed to importantly trim nan number of participants consenting to motion an online petition (23.4% successful nan anti-climate group vs. 39% successful nan power group) but demonstrated nary statistically important effect connected nan different 2 measured behaviors: donating money to nan ambiance origin aliases joining a climate-skeptical mailing list.

Furthermore, participants’ pre-existing beliefs astir ambiance alteration powerfully predicted their intentions and behaviours, but these beliefs did not importantly mean nan effect of misinformation exposure. No summation successful climate-change engagement was observed pursuing misinformation exposure.

The researchers besides investigated whether vulnerability led to nan statement of mendacious memories of nan fabricated stories. These were uncommon (about 3.8% successful nan nutrient study; ~9% successful nan ambiance study) and were not predictive of participants’ consequent behavior.

Conclusions

The coming study challenges nan presumption that a azygous brushwood pinch clone news tin easy and straight manipulate quality behavior.

While further investigation is required to found a 'tipping point', pursuing which sustained misinformation vulnerability tin consequence successful measurable behavioral change, nan coming study suggests that a one-off communicative appears to person small to nary impact, particularly connected established behaviors for illustration eating habits, pinch constricted and circumstantial effects successful governmental contexts.

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