Emotions in misinformation studies: distinguishing affective state from emotional response and misinformation recognition from acceptance

Jula Lühring (Corresponding author), Apeksha Balkrishna Shetty (Corresponding author), Corinna Koschmieder, David Garcia, Annie Waldherr, Hannah Metzler

Publications: Contribution to journalArticlePeer Reviewed

Abstract

Prior studies indicate that emotions, particularly high-arousal emotions, may elicit rapid intuitive thinking, thereby decreasing the ability to recognize misinformation. Yet, few studies have distinguished prior affective states from emotional reactions to false news, which could influence belief in falsehoods in different ways. Extending a study by Martel et al. (Cognit Res: Principles Implic 5: 1–20, 2020), we conducted a pre-registered online survey experiment in Austria (N = 422), investigating associations of emotions and discernment of false and real news related to COVID-19. We found no associations of prior affective state with discernment, but observed higher anger and less joy in response to false compared to real news. Exploratory analyses, including automated analyses of open-ended text responses, suggested that anger arose for different reasons in different people depending on their prior beliefs. In our educated and left-leaning sample, higher anger was often related to recognizing the misinformation as such, rather than accepting the false claims. We conclude that studies need to distinguish between prior affective state and emotional response to misinformation and consider individuals’ prior beliefs as determinants of emotions.

Original languageEnglish
Article number82
JournalCognitive research: principles and implications
Volume9
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 18 Dec 2024

Funding

Open access funding provided by University of Vienna. Open access funding provided by University of Vienna. This work was supported by the Vienna Science and Technology Fund (WWTF) and the City of Vienna under grant https://doi.org/10.47379/ICT20028 and grant https://doi.org/10.47379/VRG16005 .

Austrian Fields of Science 2012

  • 508012 Media impact studies

Keywords

  • misinformation
  • emotions
  • Anger
  • Belief
  • COVID-19
  • Misinformation
  • Discernment
  • Emotion
  • Recognition

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