Expressions of uncertainty in online science communication hinder information diffusion.

ABSTRACT: Despite the importance of transparent communication of uncertainty surrounding scientific findings, there are concerns that communicating uncertainty might damage the public perception and dissemination of science. Yet, a lack of empirical research on the potential impact of uncertainty communication on the diffusion of scientific findings poses challenges in assessing such claims. We studied the effect of uncertainty in a field study and a controlled experiment. In Study 1, a natural language processing analysis of over 2 million social media (Twitter/X) messages about scientific findings revealed that more uncertain messages were shared less often. Study 2 replicated this pattern using an experimental design where participants were presented with large-language-model (LLM)-generated high

SUBMITTER: Stavrova O 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11489878 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature