Listen to the article
In a contentious election year marked by partisan conflict, new research challenges assumptions about why people share political misinformation online. A comprehensive study led by Harvard Business School’s Assistant Professor Jillian J. Jordan reveals that accuracy remains a powerful social currency, even in today’s polarized political environment.
The research found that social media users expect greater reputational rewards for sharing truthful information rather than misleading content, even when falsehoods might benefit their political party. This finding contradicts a concerning theory that people deliberately spread misinformation to signal loyalty to their political tribe.
“Even in this politicized, polarized environment that our country finds itself in, people value accuracy,” explains Jordan. “This means that what makes you look the best is to attend carefully to the accuracy of the information you share, and not just to share anything that would benefit your political party if it were true.”
The research team, including scholars from Harvard, Stanford, Oxford, Cornell, and MIT, designed a two-part investigation to test these dynamics. The study emerged partly in response to academic theories suggesting that people might share misinformation as a form of “costly signaling” – demonstrating loyalty to their political group by taking outlandish positions.
In the first phase, researchers surveyed over 3,000 participants in 2021 and 2022, presenting them with 588 headlines ranging from false claims like “Hispanic Woman Claims Love Child with Trump” to accurate ones such as “Biden May Keep Some Trump Policies on Trade.” Participants evaluated how sharing these headlines would affect their reputations in their social circles.
The results were clear: participants expected the greatest reputational benefits from sharing information that was both accurate and favorable to their political party. Importantly, the perceived reputational value of accuracy didn’t diminish even when headlines were politically advantageous.
“Just because a claim is politically favorable doesn’t mean it’s any less important for it to be true, in terms of the expected reputation value of sharing it,” Jordan notes.
In the second phase, researchers analyzed approximately 26,000 Twitter (now X) posts between 2016 and 2022 that shared the same headlines from the survey. They measured user approval by examining the ratio of likes to retweets each post received, with higher ratios suggesting greater approval.
This real-world data confirmed the survey findings: accurate headlines received more approval than false ones, regardless of political leaning. Even politically favorable news garnered more positive engagement when it was truthful rather than misleading.
These findings arrive at a critical moment when concerns about misinformation on social media platforms continue to grow. They suggest that despite deep political divisions, truth remains a shared value across the political spectrum.
The research also provides insights for social media platforms seeking to combat misinformation. Features like X’s “Community Notes,” which allows users to add context to potentially misleading posts, may amplify the reputational costs of sharing false information. “Our results suggest that sharing information that gets tagged as inaccurate is likely to make users look worse than sharing accurate information,” says Jordan.
For businesses and organizations that maintain social media presences, the message is equally clear: prioritizing accuracy in content sharing builds credibility and enhances reputation. Even in a politically charged environment, the study demonstrates that being perceived as a reliable source of information remains valuable social capital.
While the research doesn’t solve all challenges related to online misinformation, it offers a more optimistic perspective than many prevailing narratives. Rather than being driven by cynical tribal signaling, most social media users appear to recognize that truth matters – both for society and for their own reputations.
Fact Checker
Verify the accuracy of this article using The Disinformation Commission analysis and real-time sources.
10 Comments
This is an encouraging study that suggests people still care about sharing accurate information, even in polarized times. The researchers’ finding that truth has social currency online is heartening, though I’d be interested to see how it plays out in different contexts and platforms.
It’s refreshing to see research challenging the narrative around the rampant spread of online misinformation. The finding that people value truth over partisan interests when sharing content is promising, though I’d be curious to learn more about the study’s design and potential limitations.
This is an interesting counterpoint to the common narrative around social media amplifying misinformation. The finding that accuracy is still valued as a social currency is encouraging, though the details of the research methodology would be helpful to evaluate the conclusions further.
This study offers an optimistic perspective on people’s motivations for sharing information online. While fake news is certainly a problem, it’s good to know that accuracy is still prized as a social currency. The research methodology and broader implications would be interesting to explore further.
The research highlighting people’s preference for sharing truthful over misleading content is quite surprising, given the prevalence of fake news. I’d be curious to see how these findings hold up across different demographics and platforms. Fact-checking seems more important than ever.
The idea that people prioritize accuracy over partisan advantage when sharing online content is intriguing. I wonder what implications this has for combating the spread of misinformation and echo chambers. More research on the nuances of this dynamic would be valuable.
Kudos to the research team for challenging assumptions about online misinformation sharing. The finding that people value accuracy over political benefits is heartening, though the real-world application remains to be seen. Fact-checking and media literacy education seem crucial.
Interesting study on the value of accuracy in online sharing, even in polarized times. It’s good to see people still care about truth over partisan messaging, even if it doesn’t always seem that way. Curious to learn more about the research methods and findings.
This is an important finding – that people still prioritize sharing truthful information over misinformation, even if it benefits their political party. It speaks to the power of accuracy as a social currency, which is heartening in today’s climate of fake news.
I agree, it’s a positive sign that people value accuracy over partisan interests when sharing online. Building a culture of truth-seeking is crucial to combating the spread of misinformation.