Skip to main content

Personality Type That Knowingly Shares Fake News


Part 1. Vocabulary


undeterred

/ˌəndəˈtərd/ adj

- persevering with something despite setbacks

The student was undeterred by the disasters in his life that he continued his schooling.

liberal

/ˈlib(ə)rəl/ adj   

- (in a political context) favoring policies that are socially progressive and promote social welfare

 

Liberal groups are supporting the new president of the country.

conservative

/kənˈsərvədiv/ adj

- (in a political context) favoring free enterprise, private ownership, and socially traditional ideas.

The country needs a conservative leader to help the economy.

nuance

/ˈn(y)o͞oˌäns/ n

- a subtle difference in or shade of meaning, expression, or sound.

There is a nuance found in the painting.

polarization

/ˌpōlərəˈzāSH(ə)n,ˌpōləˌrīˈzāSH(ə)n/ n

- division into two sharply contrasting groups or sets of opinions or beliefs.

The polarization of society between rich and poor is very clear nowadays.

 

 Part 2. Comprehension Questions

What are the two political beliefs involved in the study about who shares fake news?

What does conscientiousness mean?

Who is most, in general, are more likely to believe and share misinformation?

What is the effect of sharing erroneous reports or news?

Will you share news or any reports that you find on social media?


Part 3. Article Reading

New research identifies a specific personality type that is not only more likely to share misinformation but also undeterred from sharing it even after being warned it might be false.

Although warning labels on content have proven to dissuade many people from sharing so-called “fake news,” that’s not true for all.

The study, published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, showed participants with liberal and conservative political beliefs both shared erroneous news stories to a certain degree. But conservatives who also scored low on conscientiousness engaged in such behavior to a greater extent—they were more likely than liberals or more conscientious conservatives to share misleading information, the research finds.

Conscientiousness refers to a person’s propensity to be diligent, reliable, dutiful, cautious, control their impulses, and follow social norms, says Hemant Kakkar of Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, senior author of the paper. The goal of the research is to provide a deeper understanding and much-needed nuance in light of more than a dozen studies since 2018 that have concluded that, in general, conservatives are more likely than liberals to believe and share misinformation, Kakkar says.

“Political polarization is very high right now, so the existing research presents a problematic generalization,” says Kakkar, whose research focuses on management and organizations. “If we paint every conservative with the same broad brush, we’re just furthering political polarization. In this research, we argue that the effects are much more nuanced and limited to a small subset of people with conservative values.”

Across eight studies with more than 4,600 participants, Kakkar and coauthor Asher Lawson, a Fuqua Ph.D. student, explored numerous factors that might lead people to share misinformation, even after being warned it might be false. The research showed conscientiousness plays a significant role.

Conscientiousness is one of five traits that comprise personality, according to the widely cited “Big Five” theory in psychology originating in the 1980s. The Big Five has been used to investigate topics from how people function in work teams to a person’s susceptibility to Alzheimer’s disease. To determine conscientiousness, participants completed a 60-item questionnaire that measured this trait on a seven-point scale.

To the researchers’ surprise, the data showed those conservatives who shared misinformation did so regardless of how much time they spent on social media, whether they supported the ideas in the falsified story, or even because they were trying to align their support with a particular political figure, Kakkar says. The analysis found participants who shared erroneous reports were driven by a desire to create chaos, he says.

“We were shocked to see this had nothing to do even with a distrust for mainstream media,” Kakkar says. “It had more to do with their dissatisfaction with current political and social institutions, and a desire to break those down in favor of anarchy.”

Source: November 9th, 2021, Posted by Duke University, https://www.futurity.org/personality-type-fake-news-chaos-2653532-2/

 

 

Popular posts from this blog

"What do you do?" in a business context

  Vocabulary 1. Professionalism - refers to the level of competence, conduct, and behavior expected of individuals in a business setting. 2. Responsibilities - duties or tasks that an individual is expected to perform within their role or position in a company. 3. Accomplishments - notable achievements or successes that an individual has accomplished within their job or industry. 4. Jargon - specialized language or terminology used within a specific industry or profession that may not be easily understood by those outside of the industry. 5. Efficiency - the ability to perform tasks or complete projects in a timely and effective manner, while using resources wisely and minimizing waste. Comprehension Questions 1. Why is the question "What do you do?" commonly asked in a business context? 2. What is the importance of introducing oneself when answering the question "What do you do?" 3. What should be the focus when answering the question "What do you do?" in...

Climate change begins to suffocate the world’s fisheries

  According to research, around 70% of the world's oceans could be suffocating from a lack of oxygen as a result of climate change, potentially impacting marine ecosystems worldwide  b y 2080. The mid-ocean depths that support many fisheries worldwide are losing oxygen at unnatural rates and already lose oxygen at a critical threshold in 2021.   Vocabulary   impact / im -pakt / n. the effect that a person, event, or situation has in someone or something.   e x: The impact  of climate change on aquatic animals is devastating.   occur / uh - kur / v. t o happen, often without being planned; to exist or be present in a particular place or group of people   e x:   T he decline of oxygen content in water, will occur  throughout the world's oceans .   depths / depth / n. the quality of being deep; deepness.   E x: The ocean's middle depths   are from about 200 to 1,000 meters deep .   potential / p uh - ten -sh uh l / adj. ...

Climate change blamed for killing 14% of the world's coral reefs in just 10 years

Part 1. Vocabulary decade /ˈdekād/ n. - a period of ten years He taught at the school for nearly a decade. succession /səkˈseSHən/ n. - the action or process of inheriting a title, office, property, etc. The new king was already elderly at the time of his succession. trigger /ˈtriɡər/ n. - cause 9an event or situation) to happen or exist An allergy can be triggered by stress or overwork. conviction /kənˈvikSH(ə)n/ n. - a firmly held belief or opinion She takes pride in stating her political convictions. profound /prəˈfound/ adj. - (of a state, quality, or emotion) very great or intense: The impact of temperature rise has been profound.   Part 2. Comprehension questions What are the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (GCRMN) findings of the rising ocean temperatures? What do coral reefs support? What does the death o...