Consequences of online misinformation on COVID-19: two potential pathways and disparity by eHealth literacy

The COVID-19 pandemic poses an unprecedented threat to global human wellbeing, and the proliferation of online misinformation during this critical period amplifies the challenge. This study examines consequences of exposure to online misinformation about COVID-19 preventions. Using a three-wave pane...

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Main Authors: Kim, Hye Kyung, Tandoc, Edson C.
Other Authors: Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: 2022
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Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10356/160236
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Institution: Nanyang Technological University
Language: English
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spelling sg-ntu-dr.10356-1602362023-03-05T15:58:37Z Consequences of online misinformation on COVID-19: two potential pathways and disparity by eHealth literacy Kim, Hye Kyung Tandoc, Edson C. Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information Social sciences::Communication COVID-19 eHealth Literacy The COVID-19 pandemic poses an unprecedented threat to global human wellbeing, and the proliferation of online misinformation during this critical period amplifies the challenge. This study examines consequences of exposure to online misinformation about COVID-19 preventions. Using a three-wave panel survey involving 1,023 residents in Singapore, the study found that exposure to online misinformation prompts engagement in self-reported misinformed behaviors such as eating more garlic and regularly rinsing nose with saline, while discouraging evidence-based prevention behaviors such as social distancing. This study further identifies information overload and misperception on prevention as important mechanisms that link exposure to online misinformation and these outcomes. The effects of misinformation exposure differ by individuals' eheath literacy level, suggesting the need for a health literacy education to minimize the counterproductive effects of misinformation online. This study contributes to theory-building in misinformation by addressing potential pathways of and disparity in its possible effects on behavior. Ministry of Education (MOE) Published version This research was supported by the Ministry of Education Tier 1 Fund (2018-T1-001-154) and the Social Science Research Council Grant (MOE2018-SSRTG-022) in Singapore. 2022-07-18T02:43:38Z 2022-07-18T02:43:38Z 2022 Journal Article Kim, H. K. & Tandoc, E. C. (2022). Consequences of online misinformation on COVID-19: two potential pathways and disparity by eHealth literacy. Frontiers in Ppsychology, 13, 783909-. https://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.783909 1664-1078 https://hdl.handle.net/10356/160236 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.783909 35237207 2-s2.0-85125402373 13 783909 en 2018-T1-001-154 MOE2018-SSRTG-022 Frontiers in Ppsychology © 2022 Kim and Tandoc. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms. application/pdf
institution Nanyang Technological University
building NTU Library
continent Asia
country Singapore
Singapore
content_provider NTU Library
collection DR-NTU
language English
topic Social sciences::Communication
COVID-19
eHealth Literacy
spellingShingle Social sciences::Communication
COVID-19
eHealth Literacy
Kim, Hye Kyung
Tandoc, Edson C.
Consequences of online misinformation on COVID-19: two potential pathways and disparity by eHealth literacy
description The COVID-19 pandemic poses an unprecedented threat to global human wellbeing, and the proliferation of online misinformation during this critical period amplifies the challenge. This study examines consequences of exposure to online misinformation about COVID-19 preventions. Using a three-wave panel survey involving 1,023 residents in Singapore, the study found that exposure to online misinformation prompts engagement in self-reported misinformed behaviors such as eating more garlic and regularly rinsing nose with saline, while discouraging evidence-based prevention behaviors such as social distancing. This study further identifies information overload and misperception on prevention as important mechanisms that link exposure to online misinformation and these outcomes. The effects of misinformation exposure differ by individuals' eheath literacy level, suggesting the need for a health literacy education to minimize the counterproductive effects of misinformation online. This study contributes to theory-building in misinformation by addressing potential pathways of and disparity in its possible effects on behavior.
author2 Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information
author_facet Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information
Kim, Hye Kyung
Tandoc, Edson C.
format Article
author Kim, Hye Kyung
Tandoc, Edson C.
author_sort Kim, Hye Kyung
title Consequences of online misinformation on COVID-19: two potential pathways and disparity by eHealth literacy
title_short Consequences of online misinformation on COVID-19: two potential pathways and disparity by eHealth literacy
title_full Consequences of online misinformation on COVID-19: two potential pathways and disparity by eHealth literacy
title_fullStr Consequences of online misinformation on COVID-19: two potential pathways and disparity by eHealth literacy
title_full_unstemmed Consequences of online misinformation on COVID-19: two potential pathways and disparity by eHealth literacy
title_sort consequences of online misinformation on covid-19: two potential pathways and disparity by ehealth literacy
publishDate 2022
url https://hdl.handle.net/10356/160236
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