Project description
Why we trust misinformation
In an age where misinformation, propaganda and conspiracy theories spread like wildfire on social media, democratic values hang in the balance. The malevolent use of online platforms not only erodes trust in mainstream media it also erodes citizens’ faith in democratic institutions, often leading to unrest. With the support of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the URIBMD project will delve into cognitive science, social psychology, collective behaviour and computational social science to understand the factors influencing individuals’ choices when consuming and sharing misinformation. Visual attention, conversational affordances and temporal information diffusion are key dimensions under scrutiny. By analysing vast data sets of EU citizens, URIBMD will provide insights into why individuals trust misinformation.
Objective
The diffusion of misinformation, propaganda, and conspiracy theories on social media are threating democratic values worldwide. Malevolent use of social media is not only eroding public trust in mainstream media but is also reducing citizens’ trust in democratic institutions. This decline in trust (and often in concert with unfounded claims) has led to protests and even violent rioting, illustrating a growing divide between citizens and their democratic institutions. Although several interdisciplinary solutions have been developed to gauge and control the cascade of misleading information, the threat persists and is only predicted to deteriorate. Previous research has pointed out that, thus far, little attention has been paid to the individuals’ behaviours when consuming news. In this interdisciplinary work, we set out to harness insights from emerging paradigms in cognitive science, social psychology, collective behaviour and computational social science to better understand the sociological, cultural, and psychological factors that influence individuals’ choices when consuming and sharing misinformation; and how these choices cascade throughout their social circles and communities. The project aims to gain insights into individuals’ online behaviour on three key dimensions, 1) visual attention, 2) conversational affordances, and 3) temporal information diffusion. By combining these insights with computational social science and statistical methods, and by applying them to large-scale digital trace data of EU citizens, we aim to provide new insights into the sociological and psychological factors that make individuals more susceptible to trusting misinformation. The project aims to contribute to the EU’s democracy plan of developing policies to defend EU citizens against misinformation, disinformation, and foreign interference.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2022-PF-01
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
80539 MUNCHEN
Germany
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.