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‘Fake news’: Incorrect, but hard to correct. The role of cognitive ability on the impact of false information on social impressions

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  • De keersmaecker, Jonas
  • Roets, Arne

Abstract

The present experiment (N=390) examined how people adjust their judgment after they learn that crucial information on which their initial evaluation was based is incorrect. In line with our expectations, the results showed that people generally do adjust their attitudes, but the degree to which they correct their assessment depends on their cognitive ability. In particular, individuals with lower levels of cognitive ability adjusted their attitudes to a lesser extent than individuals with higher levels of cognitive ability. Moreover, for those with lower levels of cognitive ability, even after the explicit disconfirmation of the false information, adjusted attitudes remained biased and significantly different from the attitudes of the control group who was never exposed to the incorrect information. In contrast, the adjusted attitudes of those with higher levels of cognitive ability were similar to those of the control group. Controlling for need for closure and right-wing authoritarianism did not influence the relationship between cognitive ability and attitude adjustment. The present results indicate that, even in optimal circumstances, the initial influence of incorrect information cannot simply be undone by pointing out that this information was incorrect, especially in people with relatively lower cognitive ability.

Suggested Citation

  • De keersmaecker, Jonas & Roets, Arne, 2017. "‘Fake news’: Incorrect, but hard to correct. The role of cognitive ability on the impact of false information on social impressions," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 107-110.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:intell:v:65:y:2017:i:c:p:107-110
    DOI: 10.1016/j.intell.2017.10.005
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Hunt Allcott & Matthew Gentzkow, 2017. "Social Media and Fake News in the 2016 Election," NBER Working Papers 23089, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Hunt Allcott & Matthew Gentzkow, 2017. "Social Media and Fake News in the 2016 Election," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 31(2), pages 211-236, Spring.
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    Cited by:

    1. Fabio Padovano & Pauline Mille, 2022. "Education, fake news and the PBC," Economics Working Paper from Condorcet Center for political Economy at CREM-CNRS 2022-01-ccr, Condorcet Center for political Economy.
    2. Brydges, Christopher R. & Gignac, Gilles E. & Ecker, Ullrich K.H., 2018. "Working memory capacity, short-term memory capacity, and the continued influence effect: A latent-variable analysis," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 117-122.
    3. Shoots-Reinhard, Brittany & Goodwin, Raleigh & Bjälkebring, Pär & Markowitz, David M. & Silverstein, Michael C. & Peters, Ellen, 2021. "Ability-related political polarization in the COVID-19 pandemic," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    4. Meng Zhen Larsen & Michael R. Haupt & Tiana McMann & Raphael E. Cuomo & Tim K. Mackey, 2023. "The Influence of News Consumption Habits and Dispositional Traits on Trust in Medical Scientists," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(10), pages 1-13, May.
    5. Andrea Moscadelli & Giuseppe Albora & Massimiliano Alberto Biamonte & Duccio Giorgetti & Michele Innocenzio & Sonia Paoli & Chiara Lorini & Paolo Bonanni & Guglielmo Bonaccorsi, 2020. "Fake News and Covid-19 in Italy: Results of a Quantitative Observational Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(16), pages 1-13, August.
    6. João Pedro Baptista & Anabela Gradim, 2020. "Understanding Fake News Consumption: A Review," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 9(10), pages 1-22, October.
    7. Domenico, Giandomenico Di & Sit, Jason & Ishizaka, Alessio & Nunan, Daniel, 2021. "Fake news, social media and marketing: A systematic review," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 124(C), pages 329-341.
    8. João Pedro Baptista & Elisete Correia & Anabela Gradim & Valeriano Piñeiro-Naval, 2021. "The Influence of Political Ideology on Fake News Belief: The Portuguese Case," Publications, MDPI, vol. 9(2), pages 1-17, May.

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