Resources Repository
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ReviewPublication 2020Public Health and Online Misinformation: Challenges and Recommendations
The internet has become a popular resource to learn about health and to investigate one's …
The internet has become a popular resource to learn about health and to investigate one's own health condition. However, given the large amount of inaccurate information online, people can easily become misinformed. Individuals have always obtained information from outside the formal health care system, so how has the internet changed people's engagement with health information? This review explores how individuals interact with health misinformation online, whether it be through search, user-generated content, or mobile apps.…
Health/Medicine | North America | Evidence Synthesis | Social Determinants | Health Systems | Culture/Society -
ReviewPublication 2021Prevalence of Health Misinformation on Social Media: Systematic Review
This systematic review aimed to identify the main health misinformation topics and their prevalence on …
This systematic review aimed to identify the main health misinformation topics and their prevalence on different social media platforms, with focus on methodological quality and the diverse solutions that are being implemented to address this public health concern. The authors defined health misinformation as a health-related claim that is based on anecdotal evidence, false, or misleading owing to the lack of existing scientific knowledge. They included (1) articles that focused on health misinformation in social…
Health/Medicine | North America | Social Determinants | Health Systems | Culture/Society | Science/Technology -
ArticlePublication 2020Online Competition between Pro- and Anti-Vaccination Views
Distrust in scientific expertise is dangerous. Opposition to vaccination with a future vaccine against SARS-CoV-2, …
Distrust in scientific expertise is dangerous. Opposition to vaccination with a future vaccine against SARS-CoV-2, the causal agent of COVID-19, for example, could amplify outbreaks as happened for measles in 2019. Homemade remedies and falsehoods are being shared widely on the Internet, as well as dismissals of expert advice. There is a lack of understanding about how this distrust evolves at the system level. Authors provide a map of the contention surrounding vaccines that has…
Health/Medicine | North America | Decision Psychology | Preferences/Values | Infectious Diseases | Social Determinants | Health Systems | Policy/Regulation | Culture/Society | Government/Law | Science/Technology -
NewsPublication 2020Online Anti-Vaccine Movement in the Age of COVID-19
This article discusses a recent report by the Centre for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) that …
This article discusses a recent report by the Centre for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) that lambasted social media companies for allowing the anti-vaccine movement to remain on their platforms. The CCDH report noted that social media accounts held by so-called anti-vaxxers have increased their following by at least 7-8 million people since 2019. “The decision to continue hosting known misinformation content and actors left online anti-vaxxers ready to pounce on the opportunity presented by coronavirus,”…
Health/Medicine | North America | Preferences/Values | Infectious Diseases | Social Determinants | Culture/Society | Science/Technology -
ArticlePublication 2018Motivational Interviewing: A Promising Tool to Address Vaccine Hesitancy
In most countries, there is an increase in ‘‘vaccine hesitancy,” defined as the proportion of …
In most countries, there is an increase in ‘‘vaccine hesitancy,” defined as the proportion of parents who refuse some, many, or all vaccines or who adopt a delayed vaccination schedule, regardless of the availability of vaccination services. Generally, approaches to address vaccine hesitancy suggest either strong policies of mandatory immunization or more traditional approaches of education and information. Although mandatory immunization policies may increase uptake of vaccines, they do not address the root causes of…
Health/Medicine | North America | Preferences/Values | Infectious Diseases | Social Determinants | Culture/Society | Government/Law | Science/Technology -
ArticlePublication 2017Misinformation Lingers in Memory: Failure of Three Pro-Vaccination Strategies
People's inability to update their memories in light of corrective information may have important public …
People's inability to update their memories in light of corrective information may have important public health consequences, as in the case of vaccination choice. The authors compare three potentially effective strategies in vaccine promotion: (1) one contrasting myths vs. facts, (2) one employing fact and icon boxes, and (3) one showing images of non-vaccinated sick children. Beliefs in the autism/vaccines link and in vaccines side effects, along with intention to vaccinate a future child, were…
Health/Medicine | North America | Decision Psychology | Preferences/Values | Infectious Diseases | Child/Nutrition | Culture/Society | Government/Law | Science/Technology -
ArticlePublication 2017Increasing Vaccination: Putting Psychological Science into Action
Vaccination is one of the great achievements of the 20th century, yet persistent public health …
Vaccination is one of the great achievements of the 20th century, yet persistent public health problems include inadequate, delayed, and unstable vaccination uptake. Psychology offers three general propositions for understanding and intervening to increase uptake where vaccines are available and affordable. The first proposition is that thoughts and feelings can motivate getting vaccinated. Hundreds of studies have shown that risk beliefs and anticipated regret about infectious disease correlate reliably with getting vaccinated; low confidence in…
Health/Medicine | North America | Decision Psychology | Preferences/Values | Infectious Diseases | Social Determinants | Policy/Regulation | Global Governance | Culture/Society | Government/Law | Science/Technology | Global -
ArticlePublication 2021COVID-19 Infodemic: Twitter vs. Facebook
The global spread of COVID-19 is affected by the spread of related misinformation – the …
The global spread of COVID-19 is affected by the spread of related misinformation – the so-called COVID-19 infodemic – that makes populations more vulnerable to the disease through resistance to mitigation efforts. This article analyzes the prevalence and diffusion of links to low-credibility content about the COVID-19 pandemic across Twitter and Facebook. They characterize cross-platform similarities and differences in popular sources, diffusion patterns, influencers, coordination, and automation. Comparing the two platforms, authors found divergence among…
Health/Medicine | North America | Decision Psychology | Preferences/Values | Infectious Diseases | Social Determinants | Policy/Regulation | Culture/Society | Science/Technology | Global -
ArticlePublication 2021COVID-19 Infodemic: Applying the Epidemiologic Model to Counter Misinformation
Throughout the world, including the U.S., medical professionals and patients are facing both a pandemic …
Throughout the world, including the U.S., medical professionals and patients are facing both a pandemic and an infodemic – the first caused by SARS-CoV-2 and the second by misinformation and disinformation. The Annenberg Public Policy Center’s tracking of social and legacy media has found that millions of people have been exposed to deceptive material alleging that SARS-CoV-2 is a hoax or that experts are exaggerating its severity and the extent of its spread, that masks…
Health/Medicine | North America | Decision Psychology | Preferences/Values | Infectious Diseases | Social Determinants | Culture/Society | Science/Technology