#744 Sander van der Linden Foolproof: Why Misinformation Infects Our Minds and How to Build Immunity
RECORDED ON JANUARY 16th 2023.
Dr. Sander van der Linden is Professor of Social Psychology in the Department of Psychology at the University of Cambridge and Director of the Cambridge Social Decision-Making Lab. His research interests center around the psychology of human judgment, communication, and decision-making, including social norms and networks, attitudes and polarization, reasoning about evidence, and the public understanding of risk and uncertainty. He is the author of Foolproof: Why Misinformation Infects Our Minds and How to Build Immunity.
In this episode, we focus on Foolproof. We start by distinguishing misinformation from disinformation, and then discuss if misinformation is on the rise, and if it spreads easier online. We talk about the psychological mechanisms that make us susceptible to it, and demographic data. We discuss if the brain is Bayesian, and if intelligent and more educated people are more susceptible to misinformation. We talk about conspiratorial thinking. We discuss debunking and prebunking, and which of them works better. We talk about social media, echo chambers and filter bubbles, who spreads misinformation the most, and if it influences political behavior. Finally, we talk about how to inoculate people against misinformation.
Time Links:
Intro
Distinguishing misinformation from disinformation
Is misinformation on the rise?
Does it spread easier online?
Psychological mechanisms that make us susceptible to misinformation
Demographic data
Is the brain Bayesian? Do people update their priors?
Are intelligent and more educated people more susceptible to misinformation?
Conspiratorial thinking
Does debunking work?
Is prebunking better?
Do social media contribute to spreading misinformation?
Do we have enough cross-cultural data?
Are echo chambers and filter bubbles a big deal?
Who spreads misinformation the most?
Does misinformation influence (political) behavior?
Inoculating people against misinformation
Follow Dr. van der Linden’s work!
Follow Dr. van der Linden’s work:
Our first interview: https://youtu.be/gVwmPMM0N1Q
Faculty page: https://bit.ly/3pD88Gn
ResearchGate profile: https://bit.ly/3aFbVyJ
Foolproof: https://bit.ly/3ilRM7y
Twitter handle: @Sander_vdLinden