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An Empirical Procedure to Evaluate Misinformation Rejection and Deception in Mediated Communication Contexts

Publication ,  Journal Article
Paquin, RS; Boudewyns, V; Betts, KR; Johnson, M; O'Donoghue, AC; Southwell, BG
Published in: Communication Theory
February 1, 2022

Although misleading health information is not a new phenomenon, no standards exist to assess consumers' ability to detect and subsequently reject misinformation. Part of this deficit reflects theoretical and measurement challenges. After drawing novel connections among legal, regulatory, and philosophical perspectives on false, misleading or deceptive advertising and cognitive-process models of persuasive communication, we define deception and misinformation rejection. Recognizing that individuals can hold beliefs that align with a persuasive message without those beliefs having been influenced by it, we derive empirical criteria to test for evidence of these constructs that center on yielding or not yielding to misinformation in mediated contexts. We present data from an experimental study to illustrate the proposed test procedure and provide evidence for two theoretically derived patterns indicative of misinformation rejection. The resulting definitions and empirical procedure set the stage for additional theorizing and empirical studies on misinformation in the marketplace.

Duke Scholars

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Published In

Communication Theory

DOI

EISSN

1468-2885

ISSN

1050-3293

Publication Date

February 1, 2022

Volume

32

Issue

1

Start / End Page

25 / 47

Related Subject Headings

  • Communication & Media Studies
  • 4701 Communication and media studies
  • 2001 Communication and Media Studies
  • 1903 Journalism and Professional Writing
 

Citation

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Paquin, R. S., Boudewyns, V., Betts, K. R., Johnson, M., O’Donoghue, A. C., & Southwell, B. G. (2022). An Empirical Procedure to Evaluate Misinformation Rejection and Deception in Mediated Communication Contexts. Communication Theory, 32(1), 25–47. https://doi.org/10.1093/ct/qtab011
Paquin, R. S., V. Boudewyns, K. R. Betts, M. Johnson, A. C. O’Donoghue, and B. G. Southwell. “An Empirical Procedure to Evaluate Misinformation Rejection and Deception in Mediated Communication Contexts.” Communication Theory 32, no. 1 (February 1, 2022): 25–47. https://doi.org/10.1093/ct/qtab011.
Paquin RS, Boudewyns V, Betts KR, Johnson M, O’Donoghue AC, Southwell BG. An Empirical Procedure to Evaluate Misinformation Rejection and Deception in Mediated Communication Contexts. Communication Theory. 2022 Feb 1;32(1):25–47.
Paquin, R. S., et al. “An Empirical Procedure to Evaluate Misinformation Rejection and Deception in Mediated Communication Contexts.” Communication Theory, vol. 32, no. 1, Feb. 2022, pp. 25–47. Scopus, doi:10.1093/ct/qtab011.
Paquin RS, Boudewyns V, Betts KR, Johnson M, O’Donoghue AC, Southwell BG. An Empirical Procedure to Evaluate Misinformation Rejection and Deception in Mediated Communication Contexts. Communication Theory. 2022 Feb 1;32(1):25–47.
Journal cover image

Published In

Communication Theory

DOI

EISSN

1468-2885

ISSN

1050-3293

Publication Date

February 1, 2022

Volume

32

Issue

1

Start / End Page

25 / 47

Related Subject Headings

  • Communication & Media Studies
  • 4701 Communication and media studies
  • 2001 Communication and Media Studies
  • 1903 Journalism and Professional Writing