trust
Definition
Trust refers to the confidence people place in fact-checking sources when evaluating the accuracy of information, particularly in politically polarized social media environments. Trust in fact-checking sources is a critical psychological factor that influences whether individuals will accept crowdsourced judgments about misinformation, especially among extreme partisans. However, trust presents a strategic tension: ingroup sources inspire greater trust but provide fewer dissonant fact-checks, while outgroup sources generate more dissonant perspectives but elicit less trust. Effective crowdsourcing interventions must balance trust alongside cognitive dissonance and crowd size to successfully promote belief updates about misinformation.
Sources: Pretus et al. (2024)
Related Terms
Applications
Trust and Misinformation Correction
Trust in fact-checking sources directly impacts the effectiveness of crowdsourcing interventions designed to combat partisan misinformation, particularly among extreme partisans who are least responsive to traditional debunking efforts. When fact-checks come from sources perceived as trustworthy, individuals are more likely to reduce their sharing of misinformation in proportion to the number of people who judge content as misleading.
Sources: Pretus et al. (2024)
Trust and Ideological Positioning
Trust in fact-checking sources is complicated by ideological distance in polarized environments, where sources from within a person's ideological in-group are more trusted but less likely to provide viewpoints that contradict existing beliefs. Balancing trust with the provision of dissonant information is necessary for effective crowdsourcing interventions.
Sources: Pretus et al. (2024)
