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Debunking Misinformation about Consumer Products: Effects on Beliefs and Purchase Behavior

Publication ,  Journal Article
Fong, J; Guo, T; Rao, A
Published in: Journal of Marketing Research
2022

The prevalence of misinformation has spurred various interested parties--regulators, the media, and competing firms--to debunk false claims in the marketplace. This paper studies whether such debunking messages provided by these parties can impact consumer purchase behavior. If so, does debunking effectively correct consumers' misinformed beliefs--an ideal outcome from a policy-maker's perspective--or does it merely reinforce correct beliefs, as predicted by biased belief updating? With theory providing contradictory predictions, we design and implement a conjoint experiment that enables us to measure willingness-to-pay under exposure to real-world misinformation and debunking messages. Focusing on three ingredients in product categories where misinformation is prevalent (aluminum in deodorants, fluoride in toothpastes, and GMOs in food), we find that debunking plays an important role in mitigating the impact of misinformation. More specifically, debunking can repair the decrease in willingness-to-pay caused by misinformation by correcting misbeliefs, a promising finding for policy-makers. We discuss the incentives for firms to debunk misinformation or to introduce new products that conform to misinformation.

Duke Scholars

Published In

Journal of Marketing Research

ISSN

0022-2437

Publication Date

2022

Issue

forthcoming

Publisher

SAGE Publications

Related Subject Headings

  • Marketing
  • 3506 Marketing
  • 1505 Marketing
 

Citation

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MLA
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Fong, J., Guo, T., & Rao, A. (2022). Debunking Misinformation about Consumer Products: Effects on Beliefs and Purchase Behavior. Journal of Marketing Research, (forthcoming).
Fong, Jessica, Tong Guo, and Anita Rao. “Debunking Misinformation about Consumer Products: Effects on Beliefs and Purchase Behavior.” Journal of Marketing Research, no. forthcoming (2022).
Fong J, Guo T, Rao A. Debunking Misinformation about Consumer Products: Effects on Beliefs and Purchase Behavior. Journal of Marketing Research. 2022;(forthcoming).
Fong, Jessica, et al. “Debunking Misinformation about Consumer Products: Effects on Beliefs and Purchase Behavior.” Journal of Marketing Research, no. forthcoming, SAGE Publications, 2022.
Fong J, Guo T, Rao A. Debunking Misinformation about Consumer Products: Effects on Beliefs and Purchase Behavior. Journal of Marketing Research. SAGE Publications; 2022;(forthcoming).

Published In

Journal of Marketing Research

ISSN

0022-2437

Publication Date

2022

Issue

forthcoming

Publisher

SAGE Publications

Related Subject Headings

  • Marketing
  • 3506 Marketing
  • 1505 Marketing