Find the Fake
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Washington, DC: World Bank
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The proliferation of misinformation
and disinformation threatens to erode the credibility of
public institutions and limit their capacity to implement
policies that enhance public well-being. While health
misinformation represents an urgent global challenge,
relatively little research has examined solutions in low-
and middle-income countries. This study experimentally tests
the impact of a novel WhatsApp chatbot game pre-bunking
inoculation intervention in Jordan to boost capacity to
identify common misinformation techniques and reduce the
likelihood of sharing misleading headlines with
otherseffectively “inoculating” them against health
misinformation. A sample of 2,851 participants was recruited
online and randomly assigned to five study arms: (1)
comprehensive game-based inoculation, (2) brief game-based
inoculation that highlighted examples of only
misinformation, (3) infographics-based inoculation, (4)
exposure to placebo infographics unrelated to
misinformation, and (5) pure control. To evaluate the impact
of the intervention, the study assesses two main outcomes:
(1) ability to discern accurately headlines using
misinformation techniques and headlines that do not use
misinformation techniques, and (2) discernment in sharing
the two types of headlines. Compared to the placebo group,
the comprehensive game significantly improved discernment of
misinformation and reduced the likelihood of sharing
misleading headlines. A brief version of the game yielded
weaker effects on discernment of misinformation, but
similarly reduced intentions to share misleading headlines.
In contrast, exposure to infographics teaching similar
techniques showed no significant impacts on discernment of
misinformation, and marginal effects on intention to share
misleading headlines. These findings suggest that games can
effectively inoculate the public against misinformation in
the context of a middle-income country in the short term.
Future research is needed to explore the boundary conditions
of the findings.
Palabras clave
MICRO-BASED BEHAVIORAL ECONOMICS, BEHAVIOR CHANGE IN PUBLIC HEALTH, INFANT AND CHILD HEALTH, MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH, HEALTH PROMOTION AND DISEASE PREVENTION, GOOD HEALTH AND WELL-BEING, SDG 3