Analytic thinking predicts accuracy ratings and willingness to share COVID-19 misinformation in Australia

The classical account of reasoning posits that analytic thinking weakens belief in COVID-19 misinformation. We tested this account in a demographically representative sample of 742 Australians. Participants completed a performance-based measure of analytic thinking (the Cognitive Reflection Test) an...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Memory & cognition Vol. 50; no. 2; pp. 425 - 434
Main Authors: Nurse, Matthew S., Ross, Robert M., Isler, Ozan, Van Rooy, Dirk
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: New York Springer US 01.02.2022
Springer Nature B.V
Subjects:
Accuracy
Australia
Behavioral Science and Psychology
Cognition
Cognition & reasoning
Cognitive ability
Cognitive Psychology
Communication
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
Disease transmission
False information
Humans
Hypotheses
Misinformation
Pandemics
Psychology
Public health
Reasoning
SARS-CoV-2
Australia
Italy
Slovakia
United States > US
COVID-19
misinformation
decision-making
cognitive reflection
classical account
ISSN:0090-502X, 1532-5946, 1532-5946
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:The classical account of reasoning posits that analytic thinking weakens belief in COVID-19 misinformation. We tested this account in a demographically representative sample of 742 Australians. Participants completed a performance-based measure of analytic thinking (the Cognitive Reflection Test) and were randomized to groups in which they either rated the perceived accuracy of claims about COVID-19 or indicated whether they would be willing to share these claims. Half of these claims were previously debunked misinformation, and half were statements endorsed by public health agencies. We found that participants with higher analytic thinking levels were less likely to rate COVID-19 misinformation as accurate and were less likely to be willing to share COVID-19 misinformation. These results support the classical account of reasoning for the topic of COVID-19 misinformation and extend it to the Australian context.
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ISSN:0090-502X
1532-5946
1532-5946
DOI:10.3758/s13421-021-01219-5