Class 12: Distinguishing between fact and fiction Flashcards
True or False: The article suggests that cognitive biases, such as confirmation bias and the availability heuristic, can contribute to the spread of fake news.
TRUE
What is the “disfluency-emotion link” proposed by the authors? (Schwarz & Newman)
The disfluency-emotion link refers to the idea that when people encounter difficulty in processing information, they may experience negative emotions such as frustration or anxiety.
According to Kahan, what might explain the difference in partisan beliefs that occurs in relation to the acceptance or rejection of climate change and evolution?
The influence of the sense of belonging, that rejects information sources conflicting with beliefs central to that identity. Individuals with greater cognitive capacities may also have a greater capacity to explain away inconvenient data.
What are the five criteria people often rely on when deciding if something is true?
Social consensus, compatibility, coherence, credibility, and support.
Define the ‘Confirmation Bias’.
‘Confirmation Bias’ - The tendency to search for, interpret, and remember information in a way that confirms preexisting beliefs or hypotheses.
True or False? According to Stephan Lewandowsky, it is easier to change people’s behaviour than it is to change their attitudes.
True.
How does correcting misinformation with facts backfire in some occasions?
False information can seem more intuitively true so when a person thinks back to remember what the truthful statement was, they are more likely to remember the easier to process one, often the false statement.
Briefly define the meaning of ‘partisan heuristic’
Rules of thumb sensitive to cues of party affiliation or of identities and activities valued by or associated with their side of politics
Outline the difference between analytical and intuitive evaluation.
Analytic answers draw on relevant knowledge and may involve extensive information search, which is taxing and requires cognitive resources. Intuitive answers are less demanding and rely on feelings of fluency and familiarity.
What are some possible strategies for preventing or reducing belief in fake news?
- Explicit corrections of misinformation which do not simply inform the consumer that some information is incorrect, but also provide new information that plays the same role as the old. 2. Encouraging people to critically think and deliberate on the fake news 3. Bringing an accuracy motive to the forefront of audiences’ minds 4. Equipping people with skills to identify fake news 5. ‘Inoculation’: exposing people to a weakened version of the argument first
What are the three effects that can result as a negative consequence for using Corrections & Warnings to reduce Fake news?
- Backfire Effect - People become more committed to a claim following presentations of strong evidence against it. 2. Implied Truth Effect - Fake news headlines that fail to get tagged as (inaccurate) are considered validated & more accurate. 3. Tainted Truth effect - Informative news wrongly labelled as inaccurate leads to decreased credibility and can be exploited.
What is the deficit model in the context of belief in fake news?
The deficit model suggests that people believe in fake news due to cognitive limitations or ignorance. It implies that individuals with less cognitive capacity or knowledge are more likely to accept implausible or irrational information.
Why - according to Schwarz and Newman (2017)- are older adults more likely to experience a backfire effects of false information?
Because they are less likely to remember details better (which are necessary to remember the truth) and thus rely more on the feeling of familiarity.
What is Fake News?
A set of reports of public interest events that mimic reliable new sources, but intend to deceive or are indifferent to truth.
What is the relationship between gut feelings and intuition?
Gut feelings are automatic responses to sensory information, intuition involves conscious reflection and cognitive processing
What is Epistemology?
The study and theory of knowledge. It asks do we know things? And how do we know things?
Fill in the Blank: ______________ and ______________ are two factors discussed in the article that can influence gut feelings and judgments.
Emotional arousal and cognitive fluency are two factors discussed in the article that can influence gut feelings and judgments.
T or F: In the paper by Schwarz and Newman, it is suggested that gut feelings can sometimes be accurate indicators of truth.
TRUE
True or False? Incentivization and polling may have the effect of producing the very beliefs that are reported
True (i.e. the absence of a prior belief or not having confidence in the truth of the proposition they assert)
What are some interventions for combating fake news?
Media literacy, fact-checking, and promoting critical thinking
What is inoculation and how can it be used to prevent people from accepting fake news?
Inoculation is a technique that involves preemptively exposing people to weakened forms of arguments for fake news in order to build up resistance to them, and it has been shown to be effective in reducing people’s susceptibility to misinformation
Of these, which one is NOT true based on the reading: 1. information is more likely to be accepted when it comes from a credible source 2. a claim is less likely to be accepted when it has a large body of supporting evidence
- is NOT true. A claim is MORE likely to be accepted when it has a large body of supporting evidence
According to Levy & Ross 2021, what do they identify as a possible limitation to their discussion?
Their discussion is heavily skewed to the US context, because most of the available research concerns the United States
What are two ways people assess the compatibility of a claim?
Compatibility can be assessed analytically by checking the claim against other knowledge or intuitively by attending to one’s subjective experiences during exposure to the claim
What are the potential solutions to combat the spread of fake news?
Education, media literacy, the development of more sophisticated fact-checking tools, and increasing critical thinking skills.
“The world is the way I see it and whoever disagrees is either ill-informed or ill-intentioned.” What phenomena is this describing according to Ross & Ward (1996)?
Naive realism.
Do people believe fake news?
A surprisingly high number of people express agreement with some of the more widely disseminated fake news items. While assertion is usually a reliable guide to belief, it is not infallible. There is evidence of a belief/behavior mismatch on politically charged topics, which calls into question the sincerity of people’s belief reports. However, some studies have found evidence that people do tend to behave in ways that conform to their professed beliefs.
What is expressive responding?
Where people may seek to express their allegiance to a party, a policy or a person, rather than report their sincere beliefs
What term is used to explain acceptance of fake news (or rejection of genuine news)?
Identity protective cognition.
State one consequence of corrections and warnings
Backfire Effect - the possibility that people become more committed to a false claim after strong evidence against it has been presented
What is the “gut feeling” phenomenon?
The “gut feeling” phenomenon refers to the intuitive sense of certainty or uncertainty that people experience when making judgments or decisions.
What is one of the challenges that researchers face when trying to correct misinformation or false beliefs?
One challenge is the backfire effect, which occurs when people become more entrenched in their false beliefs when confronted with contradictory evidence.
True or False: People only rely on their feelings when evaluating the truth of statements that are easy to understand.
Answer: False Explanation: According to Schwarz and Newman (2017), people rely on their feelings to evaluate the truth of statements in various situations. This is not limited to only easy-to-understand statements. People’s reliance on their feelings can be influenced by several factors, such as the fluency with which they process the information, the emotional context of the statement, or the repetition of the statement.
What is the role of emotion in the perception of truth as explained by Schwarz and Newman?
Emotion can contribute to the cognitive ease and fluency of processing information. When information elicits a strong emotional response, it can feel more true, even if there is no rational basis for that belief.
What is a “gut feeling” as defined by Schwarz?
Gut feelings are people’s own association with like and dislike based on subjective experiences.
true or false: a given claim is also more like to be accepted when it has a large body of supporting evidence.
TRUE
What are the implications of the cognitive science of fake news for democracy and political discourse?
The cognitive science of fake news has significant implications for democracy and political discourse. Levy and Ross (2021) suggest that fake news can erode trust in democratic institutions and increase political polarization. They argue that addressing the cognitive factors that contribute to the spread of fake news is crucial for promoting a healthy democracy and informed political discourse.
What is fake news according to Levy and Ross?
The set of reports of events of public interest (“news”) that purport to be or which mimic reliable news sources but which intend to deceive or are indifferent to truth.
In Kahan’s view, one of the factor which biases people’s cognition is their sense of belonging to a particular culture.Is this statement true or wrong?
TRUE
What are some strategies that can help people avoid being misled by fake news?
Strategies for avoiding fake news include fact-checking, seeking out multiple sources, and being skeptical of sources that have a history of disseminating false information.
describe identity protective cognition.
identity protective cognition is the idea that people unconsciously disregard evidence based on the values and beliefs of the group they are part of, thus maintaining their identity as a group member.
True or false: a reason people may continue and protect their beliefs while provided with contradictory evidence is because people focus on the few facts that serve their belief system.
TRUE
Of these, which one is true based on the reading: 1. Claims are also more likely to be accepted as true when they are compatible with how one feels. 2. Claims are more likely to be accepted when they form an incoherent story.
- is true 2. Claims are more likely to be accepted when they form a COHERENT story.
Explain in brief what is expressive responding
Expressive responding is a kind of behavior where individuals may not report their sincere beliefs, by seeking to express their allegiance to a party, a policy, or a person.
What is the False Consensus Effect?
The False Consensus Effect is when an individual believes that other people hold the same beliefs or think the same as they do.
What is Naïve Realism?
The world is the way I see it & whoever disagrees is either ill-informed (which motivates persuasion efforts) or ill-intentioned (if persuasion fails).
To what concept do Levy and Robert refer to when they mention “partisan cheerleading”?
Expressive responding
True or False When knowledge is uncertain, people turn to social consensus to gauge what is likely to be correct, if many people believe it, there’s probably something to it. Hence, people are more confident in their beliefs if others share them.
TRUE
What is motivated reasoning, and how does it relate to the acceptance of fake news?
Motivated reasoning is a cognitive bias that causes individuals to interpret information in a way that supports their pre-existing beliefs or attitudes. It can lead to the acceptance of fake news that confirms one’s existing beliefs, and the rejection of true information that challenges them.
True or False? Kahan’s hypothesis about why people believe fake news cites ignorance as the primary cause.
False. Kahan’s hypothesis is based on something he terms “identity protective cognition,’ whereby people are more likely to believe things that align with their values (and more specifically their values within the culture they identify with),
What is protective cognition?
the tendency for individuals to believe or reject evidence in particular patterns that reflect the beliefs that are most evident in their group.
People’s believing of people’s belief reports has been weaken because there are evidence which proved _________happens on politically charged topics.
belief/behaviour mismatch
Why do photos exert influence by convincing people?
They are perceived as offering evidence which makes it easier for readers to understand and imagine different claim. Photos results in people thinking that the claims are fluent, familiar and true.
According to Lewandowsky, what is easier to change: people’s behaviour or people’s attitudes?
People’s behaviour
True or False: Motivated reasoning refers to the tendency to seek out information that supports pre-existing beliefs.
TRUE
How does the illusory truth effect differ from the truth effect, and what factors can influence the magnitude of these effects?
The illusory truth effect and the truth effect are both cognitive biases that can influence people’s judgments of truth, but they differ in their mechanisms and time course, and factors such as repetition and source credibility can influence the magnitude of these effects.
What is the difference between analytic and intuitive answers when it comes to determining the truthfulness of a claim?
Analytic answers involve drawing on relevant knowledge and may require extensive information search, while intuitive answers rely on feelings of fluency and familiarity and are less demanding. The easier a claim is to process and the more familiar it feels, the more likely it is judged “true.”
What are some strategies to overcome the complexities surrounding the sharing of true information?
Frequent repitition, clear articulation of the truth in formats that are easy to understand.
What did 2015 paper titled “On the reception and detection of pseudo-profound bullshit,” Pennycook et al. investigate?
People’s ability to differentiate between profound and meaningless statements that are presented in a vague and pseudo-scientific language. The authors conducted a series of studies involving more than 800 participants, which revealed that people are often unable to distinguish between profound and pseudo-profound statements, and that they tend to rate the latter as more profound.
True or false? People are more likely to accept a claim that is compatible with their own beliefs than one that is not.
TRUE
Why do small but vocal groups have a great advantage in getting their message across to others?
When uncertain, people use social consensus to judge whether information is correct. The more that small but vocal groups repeat their message, the more familiar it feels. The more familiar it feels, the more people infer that others agree with the message, and the greater they believe the social consensus is. Therefore, people are more likely to believe their message is correct.
_______ are mental shortcuts or rules of thumb that are used to simplify decision-making and problem-solving.
Heuristics
fill in the blank: While suspicion or warnings prior to exposure reduce the acceptance of false (as well as correct) information, corrections after exposure are often ____
futile
What is the primary benefit of reframing regarding it’s implications on people’s beliefs and opinions?
Reframing allows people to see their beliefs and opinions presented in a different perspective with consequences that align with the individuals opinions on a different topic.
According to Schwarz, N., & Newman, E. J. (2017), when knowledge is uncertain, people end to rely on…..? A)… their emotions and intuition. B)… logical and rational thinking. C)… social influence and group consensus. D)… memory and past experience. E)… random guessing and chance.
C)… social influence and group consensus.
How does the algorithmic design of social media aid in creating fake news?
Social media platforms algorithms are often developed to prioritize driving engagement, and what is popular among a majority of people will likely be pushed forward to other people as well. This results in content being engaging rather than accurate.
How can artificial intelligence help predict the price trend of cryptocurrencies?
Artificial intelligence can use machine learning algorithms to predict cryptocurrency price trends. It can identify trends and patterns based on market data and trading history, and predict the future trend of cryptocurrency prices. These forecast results can help investors make more informed investment decisions and obtain higher return on investment.
Determining True or False: Disinformation campaigns often target people with specific cognitive biases
TRUE . Because disinformation campaigns often target people with specific cognitive biases, because these biases can make people more susceptible to manipulation. By tailoring their messages to take advantage of these biases, disinformation campaigns can increase the likelihood that people will believe false information.
What is one of the major factors for people to believe fake news?
To preserve their worldview
According to the authors of the ‘How does the gut know truth?’, a given claim is more likely to be accepted when? a) They are verbally told a claim b) When they are shown a claim c) When a claim appears with a photo even if the photo provides no value
c) When a claim appears with a photo, even if the photo provides no value
What is it called when people assume their own beliefs and ideals are widely spread and accepted
False Consensus
True or False: According to the conversation, interdisciplinary thinking involves integrating knowledge and perspectives from multiple disciplines.
TRUE
What is the main topic of discussion in the Applied Thinking podcast episode featuring Stephan Lewandowsky?
The main topic of discussion is the importance of critical thinking and evidence-based reasoning in today’s world, and the challenges of promoting scientific literacy and rational thinking in a climate of misinformation and polarization.
Fill in the blank. According to Stephan Lewandowsky , one factor that causes people to believe conspiracy theories, is that to believe the objective truth would threaten their deeply held _____ view.
world
Why are older adults more vulnerable to backfire effects in regards to fake news?
Older adults are more vulnerable to backfire effects in regards to fake news because memory for details declines faster with age than the global feeling of familiarity when one re-encounters previously seen information. This means that older adults may be more likely to rely on their familiarity with information rather than critically evaluating the details, which can make them more susceptible to believing and spreading fake news.
Fill in the Blank: __________ and __________ are two cognitive biases that contribute to the spread and acceptance of fake news.
Confirmation bias and Availability bias are two cognitive biases that contribute to the spread and acceptance of fake news.
What does Dan Kahan’s research suggest about why some individuals may reject the scientific consensus on topics such as climate change and evolution?
Dan Kahan’s research suggests that the rejection of scientific consensus on topics such as climate change and evolution is not simply a result of cognitive limitations or ignorance. Rather, Kahan argues that our values and sense of belonging to a particular culture can bias our cognition, leading us to reject information sources that conflict with our beliefs central to that identity. This phenomenon, known as identity protective cognition, may also explain why some individuals accept fake news or reject genuine news. Kahan’s research suggests that cognitive capacity alone does not determine whether an individual will accept or reject scientific consensus, but rather how that cognitive capacity is deployed in relation to their values and cultural identity.
How might source credibility affect perception of fake news?
People may be more likely to believe and share news from sources they perceive as credible
Fill in the missing word: People are most likely to support a certain view when it is (BLANK) with their own views.
Compatible
In the podcast episode with Stephan Lewandowsky, what is the topic of discussion?
In the podcast episode titled “Applied Thinking: Uncut conversation with Stephan Lewandowsky,” the topic of discussion is applied thinking, where Lewandowsky shares insights and perspectives on the practical applications of cognitive science in various domains.
How is claim compatibility assessed in norbert schwarz’s paper
Analytically: by checking the claim against other knowledge. Intuitively: by attending to one’s subjective experiences during exposure.
Fake news has become a problem because people often do not have the ___ to distinguish between real and fake news.
Cognitive ability.
True or False: According to evidence found by Kahan (2015), white liberals and conservatives who score higher on the Ordinary Science Scale were more likely to accept the science of climate change and the truth of evolution.
FALSE. White conservatives who scored higher on the scale are in fact less likely to accept both matters, even in comparison with conservatives who score lower on the scale.
What is the term that Colbert coined to describe “truth that comes from the gut, not the book”?
Truthiness.
What does Kahan’s hypothesis about why people reject scientific consensus suggest? A) It is primarily based on cognitive limitations and ignorance. B) It is primarily based on one’s values and sense of cultural identity. C) It is primarily based on one’s level of education and knowledge. D) It is primarily based on one’s political orientation and beliefs.
Answer: B) It is primarily based on one’s values and sense of cultural identity
What is expressive responding?
Any action or interaction consciously or unconsciously communicating emotions, desires or intent.
The Republicans and Democrats may report diverging beliefs about factual claims, such as the unemployment rate, due to their expression of allegiance to a party and not because of their sincere beliefs. This type of behaviour is called …
expressive responding
What are some of the factors that make people vulnerable to fake news?
People may be more susceptible to fake news if it aligns with their pre-existing beliefs, if it is repeated frequently, and if it is presented in a visually compelling way.
According to “The Cognitive Science of Fake News”, what are some potential solutions to the problem of fake news?
The reading suggests several potential solutions to the problem of fake news, including improving media literacy and critical thinking skills, developing technological solutions such as fact-checking tools, and promoting social norms and policies that discourage the spread of misinformation.
True or False? Claims are also more likely to be accepted when they form a coherent and plausible story
TRUE
Fill in the blank: Telling people multiple times that a health claim is false (reduced/increased) acceptance of the claim when people were tested immediately, but (reduced/increased) acceptance three days later
Reduced, increased
True or false: The scientific method is a linear process that always proceeds from observation to hypothesis to experimentation to conclusion.
False. While the scientific method generally involves these steps, it is not necessarily a linear process. Scientists may need to revisit and revise their hypotheses or experimental designs as new evidence emerges, and the process of scientific inquiry can be iterative and cyclical.
What are some key factors that make echo chambers so effective at convincing people?
’- No access to opposing information - Information is repeated many times - comments are often paired with figures and other graphics increasing their familiarity and perception as evidence-based
Define the reframing method of sticky messaging.
A sticky message is a concept aiming to reframe a situation, making it easier to accept in turn causing opinion change. The message should be easy to remember, uncomplicated and have a specific goal.
What is the “illusory truth effect”?
Its a cognitive bias that can cause people to rate statements as more true simply because its something they have heard before, regardless of if they are true or not. This effect can cause people to be more vulnerable to believing and also spreading fake news.
Stephan Lewandowsky discusses an Australian study in which a sample of people were surveyed on whether they believed the science on climate change. The results showed only 6% people denied climate change but those people believed that 50% of people agreed with them. This is an example of what? a) a mental representation b) the affect heuristic c) the false consensus effect or d) narrow transfer.
c) the false consensus effect
