Psychological inoculation can build societal resistance to misinformation

Evidence

So, instead of more lessons on how to effectively persuade other people, this is a book about how to fight back. How to gain resistance to persuasion by proofing our minds against the tactics of those seeking to deceive us with fake news and misinformation. I will share everything I’ve uncovered about how not to be duped by fake news and misinformation – from how the brain discerns fact from fiction, to the viral spread of misinformation, including its alleged role in the US 2016 election, Brexit, international wars, and the Covid-19 pandemic; to the future of truth in society. The misinformation virus will be placed under a microscope in order to synthesize a vaccine, focusing specifically on breaking down the mass persuasion process – from neurons to elections – in an attempt to cultivate societal immunity against it. — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof, 20

Categorization

• DEFINE: Defines the book’s project: ‘psychological vaccine’ against misinformation, elaborated across chapters.
• XREF: connects to: Being inside an echo chamber raises one’s odds of encountering misinformation — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof: Why Misinformation Infects…, 447; Information warfare can succeed by inducing generic confusion rather than by persuading anyone. — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof: Why Misinformation Infects…, 13; Misinformation hijacks cognitive machinery and resists correction like a virus — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof: Why Misinformation Infects…, 22 (+7 more)

Broader Connections

• Pre-exposing people to weakened persuasive attacks cultivates mental resistance against later misinformation. #corroborates (0.95) — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof, 633
• Inoculation can spread socially like herd immunity against misinformation #expands (0.92) — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof, 989
• Exposure to weakened misinformation builds psychological immunity against it #corroborates (0.90) — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof, 24
• Inoculation theory aims to prevent false beliefs before exposure rather than correct them after #expands (0.90) — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof, 30