Overcoming Misinformation by Supportive Use of Internet Searches: Practices and Evidence

• In Event: Memory and Learning

Abstract

People are routinely exposed to inaccurate information, which can inform problematic decisions and behaviors. Interventions designed to attenuate such effects are often ineffective, however most empirical attempts have disallowed access to outside resources to evaluate information despite people having access to them in the real world. We tested whether affording the option to search for relevant online information following exposure to inaccurate statements would reduce reproductions of those inaccuracies. Participants allowed to search online reproduced less inaccurate information than did participants who were not allowed to search. Codings of actual search behaviors highlight how searches offer useful supports for reducing the influence of and uncertainty associated with inaccurate exposures, serving as accessible tools for enhancing learning and media experiences.

Authors

• David Rapp, Northwestern University

• Amalia Donovan, Northwestern University

• Michael A. Spikes, Northwestern University School of Education and Social Policy Human Development and Social Policy

• NIkita Salovich, Northwestern University