AG Heinzelmann, 18.10.2024 Interventions to reduce the spread of misinformation: Two online experiments

Misinformation can have a profound detrimental impact on populations’ wellbeing. While previous experiments testing interventions have used perception- or intention-based outcome measures, in these two online experiments we presented participants with real-life misinformation posts in a social media platform simulation and measured their engagement, a more ecologically valid approach. The first is a large UK-based online experiment (n = 2430), where we assessed the performance of false tag and inoculation interventions in protecting against different forms of misinformation. Our pre-registered mixed-effects models indicated that both interventions reduced engagement with misinformation, but inoculation was most effective. The second is a pilot with n = 1000 Singaporean citizens and permanent residents, where we assessed the performance of two different inoculation interventions: a carousel and a video. We found that the carousel reduced positive reactions to misinformation posts, while the video increased discernment of disinformation (measured using the signal detection index d-prime).

About Natalie Gold:

Dr. Natalie Gold is the Head of Trials at Verian and a Visiting Professor at the London School of Economics. She was educated at Oxford (PPE, M.phil., D.phil) and has held faculty positions at Edinburgh, King's College, and Oxford. Her interdisciplinary project "Self-Control and the Person" was funded by the European Research Council. Her work is published by leading outlets like Nous, The Journal of Philosophy, Psychological Science, and Oxford University Press.