Distractions, analytical thinking and falling for fake news: A survey of psychological factors

ABSTRACT: Analytical thinking safeguards us against believing or spreading fake news. In various forms, this common assumption has been reported, investigated, or implemented in fake news education programs. Some have associated this assumption with the inverse claim, that distractions from analytical thinking may render us vulnerable to believing or spreading fake news. This paper surveys the research done between 2016 and 2022 on psychological factors influencing one’s susceptibility to believing or spreading fake news, considers which of the psychological factors are plausible distractors to one’s exercise of analytical thinking, and discusses some implications of considering them as distractors to analytical thinking. From these, the paper draws five conclusions: (1) It is not analytical thinkin

SUBMITTER: Kwek A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10259813 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature