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https://www.techdirt.com/2025/11/03/symbolic-strength-more-important-than-facts-when-it-comes-to-misinformation/>
"Why do some people endorse claims that can easily be disproved? It’s one thing
to believe false information, but another to actively stick with something
that’s obviously wrong.
Our new research, published in the
Journal of Social Psychology, suggests
that some people consider it a “win” to lean in to known falsehoods.
We are social psychologists who study political psychology and how people
reason about reality. During the pandemic, we surveyed 5,535 people across
eight countries to investigate why people believed COVID-19 misinformation,
like false claims that 5G networks cause the virus.
The strongest predictor of whether someone believed in COVID-19-related
misinformation and risks related to the vaccine was whether they viewed
COVID-19 prevention efforts in terms of symbolic strength and weakness. In
other words, this group focused on whether an action would make them appear to
fend off or “give in” to untoward influence.
This factor outweighed how people felt about COVID-19 in general, their
thinking style and even their political beliefs.
Our survey measured it on a scale of how much people agreed with sentences
including “Following coronavirus prevention guidelines means you have backed
down” and “Continuous coronavirus coverage in the media is a sign we are
losing.” Our interpretation is that people who responded positively to these
statements would feel they “win” by endorsing misinformation – doing so can
show “the enemy” that it will not gain any ground over people’s views."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
