The Effect of a Protective Message on Critical Evaluation of Fake News

Tilburg University

Status: Completed

Conditions: Disclosure of Protective Message

Treatments: Behavioral: Source of news

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT05030883

TiU-1

Details and patient eligibility

About

Background: Disinformation has become an increasing societal concern, especially due to the speed that news is shared in the current digital era. In particular in the healthcare sector disinformation can lead to serious casualties, as the current COVID-19 crisis clearly shows.

Objective: The main aim of this study was to experimentally examine the effects of information about the source's and a displayed protective warning message on users' critical evaluation of news items, as well as the perception of accuracy of the news item.

Methods: A 3(unreliable versus reliable versus no identified source) x 2 (protective message: with versus without) between subject design has been conducted among 307 participants (mean age = 29 years, SD = 10.9 years).

Enrollment: 400 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Facebook user
• older than 18
• Dutch

Exclusion criteria

• younger than 18 years
• no facebook

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Factorial Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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400 participants in 3 patient groups

unreliable source

Experimental group

Description:

In this condition participants receive a news message from an unreliable source

Treatment:

Behavioral: Source of news

reliable source

Experimental group

Description:

In this condition participants receive a news message from an reliable source

Treatment:

Behavioral: Source of news

no source

Experimental group

Description:

In this condition participants receive a news message without a source

Treatment:

Behavioral: Source of news