Document Type
Thesis
Date of Degree Completion
Summer 2022
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Department
Experimental Psychology
Committee Chair
Danielle Polage
Second Committee Member
Ralf Greenwald
Third Committee Member
Stephen Schepman
Abstract
The spread of false information on social media has become a growing concern for authorities around the world. Many social media companies have now begun to tag posts with false information warnings in order to prevent the spread of potentially dangerous misinformation. While previous research has shown that this method is effective at reducing belief in the moment, newer research is suggesting that the benefits of false information tags are negated by repeated exposure. The goal of the current study was to investigate how this phenomenon applies to misinformation concerning the COVID-19 pandemic, a topic which has not been explored in the current literature. Participants were asked to view and rate the accuracy of false and true statements concerning the pandemic. One week after the first session, participants returned and rated the same statements (among new ones) for accuracy. Overall, false information tags did not reduce ratings of accuracy for false COVID-19 information. Additionally, ratings of accuracy did not change significantly between the first and second session. This is in contrast to previous research concerning topics other than COVID-19. Limitations to the generalizability of these findings and possible implications are discussed.
Recommended Citation
Simmons, Jeremy, "Combatting COVID-19 Misinformation on Social Media: Do False Information Tags Work?" (2022). All Master's Theses. 1782.
https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/etd/1782