Message Credibility Research Articles

The majority of fact-checking labels in the United States are intense and this decreases engagement intention

Abstract Fact-checking labels have been widely accepted as an effective misinformation correction method. However, there is limited theoretical understanding of fact-checking labels’ impact. This study theorizes that language intensity influences fact-checking label processing and tests this idea through a multi-method design. We first rely on a large-scale observational dataset of fact-checking labels from 7 U.S. fact-checking organizations (N = 33,755) to examine the labels’ language intensity and then use a controlled online experiment in the United States (N = 656) to systematically test the causal effects of fact-checking label intensity (low, moderate, or high) and fact-checking source (professional journalists or artificial intelligence) on perceived message credibility of and the intention to engage with fact-checking messages. We found that two-thirds of existing labels were intense. Such high-intensity labels had null effects on messages’ perceived credibility, yet decreased engagement intention, especially when labels were attributed to AI. Using more intense labels may not be an effective fact-checking approach.

Towards AI-Driven Healthcare: Systematic Optimization, Linguistic Analysis, and Clinicians' Evaluation of Large Language Models for Smoking Cessation Interventions.

Creating intervention messages for smoking cessation is a labor-intensive process. Advances in Large Language Models (LLMs) offer a promising alternative for automated message generation. Two critical questions remain: 1) How to optimize LLMs to mimic human expert writing, and 2) Do LLM-generated messages meet clinical standards? We systematically examined the message generation and evaluation processes through three studies investigating prompt engineering (Study 1), decoding optimization (Study 2), and expert review (Study 3). We employed computational linguistic analysis in LLM assessment and established a comprehensive evaluation framework, incorporating automated metrics, linguistic attributes, and expert evaluations. Certified tobacco treatment specialists assessed the quality, accuracy, credibility, and persuasiveness of LLM-generated messages, using expert-written messages as the benchmark. Results indicate that larger LLMs, including ChatGPT, OPT-13B, and OPT-30B, can effectively emulate expert writing to generate well-written, accurate, and persuasive messages, thereby demonstrating the capability of LLMs in augmenting clinical practices of smoking cessation interventions.

정부 정책광고의 메시지 수용 과정과 정부광고의 효과 측정을 위한 지수 개발

정부 정책광고의 메시지 수용 과정과 정부광고의 효과 측정을 위한 지수 개발

Consumer responses to human-AI collaboration at organizational frontlines: strategies to escape algorithm aversion in content creation

AbstractAlthough Artificial Intelligence can offer significant business benefits, many consumers have negative perceptions of AI, leading to negative reactions when companies act ethically and disclose its use. Based on the pervasive example of content creation (e.g., via tools like ChatGPT), this research examines the potential for human-AI collaboration to preserve consumers' message credibility judgments and attitudes towards the company. The study compares two distinct forms of human-AI collaboration, namely AI-supported human authorship and human-controlled AI authorship, with traditional human authorship or full automation. Building on the compensatory control theory and the algorithm aversion concept, the study evaluates whether disclosing a high human input share (without explicit control) or human control over AI (with lower human input share) can mitigate negative consumer reactions. Moreover, this paper investigates the moderating role of consumers’ perceived morality of companies’ AI use. Results from two experiments in different contexts reveal that human-AI collaboration can alleviate negative consumer responses, but only when the collaboration indicates human control over AI. Furthermore, the effects of content authorship depend on consumers' moral acceptance of a company's AI use. AI authorship forms without human control lead to more negative consumer responses in case of low perceived morality (and no effects in case of high morality), whereas messages from AI with human control were not perceived differently to human authorship, irrespective of the morality level. These findings provide guidance for managers on how to effectively integrate human-AI collaboration into consumer-facing applications and advises to take consumers' ethical concerns into account.

Softening the Blow: The Power of Rhetorical Frames Used by Social Media Influencers with Sponsorship Disclosure

This study explores how social media influencers’ (SMIs) endorsements preceding commercials can increase positive response, even when sponsorship is disclosed. We employed three rhetorical frames—transparency, co-orientation, and downplaying—in a real-world test scenario involving TV commercials for two energy corporations with problematic reputations. A national survey with 644 respondents revealed that each rhetorical frame significantly bolstered positive attitudes toward the featured corporations. These attitude shifts were mediated by reductions in persuasion knowledge and increases in message credibility. Our findings not only support but also extend existing theories on endorsement effectiveness by integrating the insights from rhetorical theory. It shows that understanding the nuances of ‘how’ a message is delivered, through rhetorical framing, can be as crucial as ‘what’ is being said.

Content Analysis and Audience Receptions of Online Da'wah on YouTube Social Media

YouTube social media has provided online da'wah content that the audience can access. This study aimed to analyze (1) the content of online da'wah on YouTube and (2) the audience's reception of online da'wah on social media. This research uses a qualitative approach with content analysis, determining message characteristics and reception analysis to determine the position of audience acceptance of online da'wah messages. The results of the study show that: (1) Online da'wah materials on YouTube social media contain various themes, namely the study of monotheism (Aa Gym Official), Fiqh (Adi Hidayat Official), and ethical issues (Ustadz Abdul Somad Official). The content of da'wah is in accordance with the characteristics of the preacher and the audience's needs; (2) The audience's reception of online da'wah on social media, YouTube is divided into two, namely the dominant position and negotiation, while the opposition is not found. The audience reception is related to the theme of da'wah, the community's needs, and the interactive style between the preacher and the audience. Therefore, the preacher needs to master social media applications, choose the theme of online da'wah according to his needs, and establish a strong relationship with the audience. Keywords: Da'wah online, content of da'wah, audience reception, YouTube, social media.

Navigating misinformation in voice messages: Identification of user‐centered features for digital interventions

AbstractMisinformation presents a challenge to democracies, particularly in times of crisis. One way in which misinformation is spread is through voice messages sent via messenger groups, which enable members to share information on a larger scale. Gaining user perspectives on digital misinformation interventions as countermeasure after detection is crucial. In this paper, we extract potential features of misinformation in voice messages from literature, implement them within a program that automatically processes voice messages, and evaluate their perceived usefulness and comprehensibility as user‐centered indicators. We propose 35 features extracted from audio files at the character, word, sentence, audio, and creator levels to assist (1) private individuals in conducting credibility assessments, (2) government agencies faced with data overload during crises, and (3) researchers seeking to gather features for automatic detection approaches. We conducted a think‐aloud study with laypersons () to provide initial insight into how individuals autonomously assess the credibility of voice messages, as well as which automatically extracted features they find to be clear and convincing indicators of misinformation. Our study provides qualitative and quantitative insights into valuable indicators, particularly when they relate directly to the content or its creator, and uncovers challenges in user interface design.

Does source matter? Examining the effects of health experts, friends, and social media influencers on young adult perceptions of Instagram e-cigarette education messages

PurposeYoung adults’ e-cigarette use is a leading public health concern. Using messages from credible sources can help improve message acceptance, yet little research has examined the role of source credibility on young adults’ responses to e-cigarette education messages. MethodsWe examined the impact of source on young adults’ perceptions of e-cigarette education messages and e-cigarettes. In July 2022, we conducted an experimental study using an online sample of young adults (N=459, Mage=24.6) who were randomized to one of three source conditions: expert, friend, or influencer, and viewed e-cigarette education messages. We used one-way ANOVA to estimate the association between the conditions and outcomes (perceived source credibility, message trust, curiosity, use interests, perceived message effectiveness, beliefs, harm perceptions, and intentions to refrain). ResultsThe expert condition was associated with significantly higher perceived source credibility (vs. friend, influencer; p<0.001), message trust (vs. friend, influencer; p<0.001), and curiosity (vs. influencer; p’s<0.05). ConclusionsPublic health campaigns may leverage health experts to deliver e-cigarette education messages targeting young adults to improve effectiveness of the messages.

Effects of a self-affirmation intervention on responses to bowel cancer screening information

Objective To investigate the effect of two brief self-affirmation interventions, immediately prior to reading standard information about bowel cancer screening, on state anxiety, message acceptance and behavioural intention to screen for bowel cancer. Methods 242 adults aged 49 were randomised to one of two self-affirmation interventions (health or values) or one of two control conditions, before reading an NHS England bowel cancer screening leaflet. Participant friend and family history of bowel cancer, state anxiety, message acceptance, behavioural intention to screen, trait self-esteem and spontaneous self-affirmation were measured. Data were analysed using between-participants analysis of variance, planned contrasts and moderated regression. Results No main effects of experimental condition on levels of state anxiety, message acceptance and behavioural intention were found. However, planned contrasts showed participants who self-affirmed about their health or values (conditions-collapsed) were significantly less anxious and reported significantly higher behavioural intentions compared to participants in the controls (conditions-collapsed). Irrespective of condition, higher levels of spontaneous self-affirmation and trait self-esteem were correlated with lower anxiety, higher intentions, and message acceptance. Conclusion There was some evidence of the effect of health-based self-affirmation on lowering anxiety; however, further research is needed to explore the effectiveness of different self-affirmation interventions in larger samples.

Overcoming Confirmation Bias in Misinformation Correction: Effects of Processing Motive and Jargon on Climate Change Policy Support

A 2 (jargon vs. no jargon) × 3 (motive: control vs. accuracy vs. impression) between-subjects experiment examined the impact of jargon and processing motive in correcting climate change misinformation and promoting policy support. The results revealed a positive effect of jargon use when participants were asked to focus on accuracy during information processing. This effect was mediated by reduced anger, increased systematic processing, and enhanced perceptions of message credibility. However, jargon had a negative effect when no specific motive was induced, and it did not make a difference in correction outcomes when participants were asked to focus on making positive social impressions. These findings provide theoretical implications for information processing and practical insights for addressing misinformation in the context of climate change.

Educational Video Intervention to Improve Health Misinformation Identification on WhatsApp Among Saudi Arabian Population: Pre-Post Intervention Study.

Health misinformation can adversely affect individuals' quality of life and increase the risk of mortality. People often fail to assess the content of messages before sharing them on the internet, increasing the spread of misinformation. The problem is exacerbated by the growing variety of digital information environments, especially social media, which presents as an effective platform for spreading misinformation due to its rapid information-sharing capabilities. Educational interventions have been developed to help consumers verify the validity of digital health information. However, tools designed to detect health misinformation on social media content have not been validated. Given the increased use of social media platforms, particularly WhatsApp, it is crucial to develop tools to help consumers assess the credibility of messages and detect misinformation. The main objective of this study is to develop and assess an educational tool aimed at educating consumers about detecting health misinformation on WhatsApp. The secondary objective is to assess the association between demographic factors and knowledge levels. The study used a single-arm, pre-post intervention design to evaluate the effectiveness of an educational video in improving participants' ability to detect health-related misinformation in WhatsApp messages. In the first phase, an educational video intervention was developed and validated. In the second phase, participants were invited to complete a web-based survey that consisted of pre-evaluation questions, followed by the educational video intervention. Subsequently, they were asked to answer the same questions as the postevaluation questions. The web-based survey received 485 responses. The completion rate was 99.6% (n=483). Statistically significant associations existed between knowledge level and age, gender, employment, and region of residence (P<.05). The video intervention did elicit a statistically significant change in the participants' abilities to identify misinformation in WhatsApp messages (z=-6.887; P<.001). Viewing the video was associated with increased knowledge about the following concepts: checking the "forwarded" label (P<.001), looking for spelling and grammatical errors (P<.001), analyzing the facts (P=.03), checking links (P=.002, P=.001), and assessing the photos and videos (P<.001). There was a statistically significant difference in knowledge level before and after the intervention (P<.001). This study developed and evaluated the effectiveness of an educational video intervention to improve health misinformation identification on WhatsApp among the Saudi Arabian population. The results indicate that educational videos can be valuable tools for improving participants' abilities to identify misinformation. The outcomes of this research can contribute to our understanding of what constitutes an effective tool for enhancing health misinformation awareness. Such interventions may be particularly useful in combating misinformation among Arabic-speaking populations on WhatsApp, which may ultimately improve eHealth literacy. Limiting the prevalence and impact of misinformation allows people to make better-informed health decisions.

Adolescents' perceptions of substance use messaging in the age of social media: resolving cognitive dissonance.

This study interviewed adolescents about their exposure to and perceptions of substance-related social media content and substance use prevention messages. Participants (analytic sample N = 30, age 14-18 years, in CA, USA, 40% male) were recruited from Instagram and Facebook for online semi-structured interviews. An interview transcript coding guide was developed based on the interview questions and emerging themes. Most (27/30) participants reported exposure to peers using substances on social media through posts made on personal accounts. All peer posts portrayed substance use in a positive light. Most participants reported exposure to formal prevention messages on social media (i.e. public service announcements) (19/30) and in schools (i.e. drug education) (21/30; 70.0%) teaching the negative consequences of substance use. Responses to the differences between peer posts and prevention messages included dismissing prevention messages (7/30), believing that their peers were more credible (4/30), desiring comprehensive substance information (3/30) and believing that the no-use message was ineffective for at-risk youth (4/30). Messages shared by peers online significantly contrasted with prevention messages (i.e. public service announcements and drug education). This difference appeared to undermine prevention message credibility. Balanced prevention messages acknowledging the spectrum of risk and reward when using different substances may reduce dissonance and increase engagement.

“Got a Radio Show”: The Influence of Steve Harvey’s Morning Ministry on Secular Radio Audiences

ABSTRACT This study examines how Steve Harvey’s devotional commentary influences listeners through his morning radio program. Unlike most secular morning radio programs, Harvey opens and closes his syndicated program with religious commentary and devotional messages. After an analysis of his devotional messages, two interpretive themes emerged. Findings indicate listeners believe inspirational messages should be aired on secular, commercial radio programs. Also, Steve Harvey’s celebrity status has some influence on their acceptance of the religious messages due to the parasocial relationship listeners develop with the host.

Digital Influencer Marketing: How Message Credibility and Media Credibility Affect Trust and Urge to Buy among Customers in Kathmandu Valley?

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the mediating role of trust in influencer posts (TR) in relation to the urge to buy (UTB) and its antecedents: perceived transparency (PT), perceived interactivity (PI), and informational value (IV) among customers in Kathmandu Valley. Design/Methodology/Approach: This paper employed a cross-sectional survey research design to gather data from 234 social media users in the Kathmandu Valley. Further, a purposive sampling method was applied to select the respondents. Furthermore, the proposed model was tested by applying Hayes Process Macro Model 4. Findings: The result reveals a significant positive influence of TR and IV on UTB. Moreover, TR partially mediates the relationship between PT and UTB, PI and UTB, and IV and UTB among customers in Kathmandu Valley. Practical Implication: By understanding the role of media and message credibility in developing trust in digital influencers’ posts, this paper could help pave the way for crafting strategies and developing marketing policies for digital marketing-based entrepreneurs. Furthermore, marketers can use this information to enhance SM users’ buying behavior through various influencer marketing campaigns. Originality: This paper is among the earliest works to underscore digital influencer marketing by understanding the mediating role of TR using social learning theory (SLT) and signaling theory as its theoretical foundations among Nepali social media (SM) users. Keywords: digital influencer, influencer marketing, online celebrity, social media influencer, urge to buy

Factor affecting internet information credibility: The moderating effect of gender

This study provides an analytical view of the correlation between several factors that influence the credibility of information available through various sources on the Internet. The most critical factors include information quality, source credibility, argument strength, message credibility, and average credibility. Additionally, the study explores the impact of gender and years of experience as demographic variables on the nature and size of these relationships. The study relied on a critical review of previous related literature. In addition, it adopted an analytical approach using a sample of 300 Internet users through a questionnaire designed based on the study hypotheses. Most of these relationships were found to be at an average level, except for the relationship between source credibility and information credibility. No statistical indicators were observed. Consequently, the researchers acknowledge the need for caution when generalizing these results to society. The study also found that the gender of the recipient and the number of years of experience did not necessarily play a mediating role in the relationship between the tested factors and the credibility of information received via the Internet.

Exploring the Credibility and Trustworthiness of Web 2.0 Tools during Covid-19 from the Eyes of Information Providers

Background: In addition to posing serious obstacles to international health systems, the coronavirus (COVID-19) has created a deluge of false information. During COVID-19, the librarian must have the most recent information available in their capacity as an information manager. The use and methods used by librarians to assess the validity of information and the legitimacy of Web 2.0 technology providers are examined in this study. Aim: Using a survey approach, the reliability and trustworthiness of web tools were investigated in this quantitative study during COVID-19. Method: The study's 82% response rate was sustained. In terms of representation, men remained in the majority over women. Study population: Pakistani university librarians in the public sector. It's clear that the bulk of responders 59.48% attend universities in Punjab, followed by those in Islamabad (17.24%), KPK (13.79%), Sindh (6.9%), Balochistan 1.72%), and GilgitBaltistan 0.86%. Results: The results demonstrate that web 2.0 tools had a significant impact on librarians' knowledge of health information seeking behaviors during COVID-19; however, the information they accessed on social media during the pandemic was shared information about the disease and came from discussion groups. Among other things, during COVID, web 2.0 tools' credibility and trustworthiness greatly improved, and the importance of message credibility also increased. Conclusion: The study found that web 2.0 tools for health information during Covid-19 were mainly trusted by information professionals, with discussion groups on social media being the main source of health information. The majority of respondents (59.48%) were aged 26-35, with a high trustworthiness ratio in Balochistan, Sindh, and Punjab. The study also found a high ratio in Sindh. Key words: Trustworthiness, Credibility, Web 2.0 tools, Information Providers, health information

Pro-liberalism vs. Nationalism: how critical opinion leaders challenge the persuasive effect of propaganda in China

In Chinese cyberspace, mass media and opinion leaders struggle over socio-political discourses. While the former propagates positive views on national policies, the latter often expresses dissenting opinions that challenge authoritarian rule. In the context of China–US competition, do citizens still perceive non-state sources as more credible? Taking the Belt and Road Initiative as the issue, this experimental study investigates how Chinese netizens process conflicting information from a government-owned news agency and two opinion leaders with varying levels of source credibility. Our findings reveal that high-credibility propagandistic news is effective, whereas low-credibility propaganda is not. Furthermore, an opinion leader perceived as independent surpasses government propaganda in influence, regardless of information credibility. However, when an opinion leader is perceived as backed by a rival nation, the former’s influence is counterproductive unless their message credibility exceeds that of propaganda. This study sheds light on the prevalence of nationalistic sentiment in China, which has raised concerns about the manipulation of Chinese netizens by hostile forces.

Jumat Khutbah As Community Education Strategy For Family Stability Among Muslim Adults In Ibadan Metropolis, Nigeria

Today, family instability (separation or a divorce) is predominant among Muslims in Ibadan metropolis. This is evidenced by the rate of separation and divorce cases, involving Muslim families in social welfare offices and customary courts in the city. The consequences of such family instability are among the indicators that placed Nigeria among 3rd World countries. Jumat Khutbah is usually used as community education tool to send messages of peace in the Muslim communities. It against this background that this research foresees the need to investigate how Jumat Khutbah as community education strategy responds to the contemporary problem of family instability among the Muslims in Ibadan metropolis. Two hypotheses and one research question guided the study. Qualitative and quantitative instruments were used to collect information from forty-five Imams, chairmen and secretaries of mosques and three hundred worshipers that were systematically selected while listening to khutbah in the fifteen purposively selected mosques in Ibadan metropolis. Data collected on the hypotheses were analysed with correlation while the research question was answered with content analysis of the information collected through the KII. The results revealed that a significant relationship exists between khutbah presentation and family stability and that a significant relationship exists between listening to and acceptance of khutbah messages and reduction of family instability. The study therefore recommends that Leadership of muslim communities should continuously motivate jumat Imams to ensure that issue of family stability and management of family instability enjoy more time allocation in jumat khutbah more regularly and that rather than going to conventional or sharia court on resolution of family disputes, active process of intervention, reconciliation and rehabilitation should be put in place as directed by Quran 4:35 to manage family issues among members of the muslim communities.

The manipulative essence of visual media: from man-made images to generative deepfakes

The paper explores the problems of manipulation and reliability of information in the visual media. Manipulation is part of their essence. Distortions in the message arise from a shift in attention from reality as such to how it’s seen by others or who and how it’s represented. The objective vision is replaced by a presentation of the vision of others in visual media. This opens up the possibility of manipulation and becomes the reason for the creation of visual falsifications. Modernity has become the era of post-truth. Visual media are increasingly shifting towards total falsification with the development of digital technologies, artificial intelligence. The generated image turns out to be more real and reliable than reality itself. This paper uses the classification of visual media images based on how they are created. An attempt is made to identify the causes of distortions in the representation of reality at different stages of the development of visual media. The article analyzes how the technologies of creating visual images affect the development of manipulative and falsifying practices that undermine the credibility of the visual message.

Psychological inoculation strategies to fight climate disinformation across 12 countries.

Decades after the scientific debate about the anthropogenic causes of climate change was settled, climate disinformation still challenges the scientific evidence in public discourse. Here we present a comprehensive theoretical framework of (anti)science belief formation and updating to account for the psychological factors that influence the acceptance or rejection of scientific messages. We experimentally investigated, across 12 countries (N = 6,816), the effectiveness of six inoculation strategies targeting these factors-scientific consensus, trust in scientists, transparent communication, moralization of climate action, accuracy and positive emotions-to fight real-world disinformation about climate science and mitigation actions. While exposure to disinformation had strong detrimental effects on participants' climate change beliefs (δ = -0.16), affect towards climate mitigation action (δ = -0.33), ability to detect disinformation (δ = -0.14) and pro-environmental behaviour (δ = -0.24), we found almost no evidence for protective effects of the inoculations (all δ < 0.20). We discuss the implications of these findings and propose ways forward to fight climate disinformation.