Becoming a Smart News Consumer: Elizabeth Schwab On How To Spot Disinformation, Fake News, And Conspiracy Theories
An Interview With David Leichner
Do not share false information to make others aware that it is false. This seems counterintuitive, but sharing a post that contains false information only serves to increase the visibility and engagement of that content which, in turn, will ensure the social media channels’ algorithms serve it to more users. Instead, create your own, new post with correct information or simply report and block those spreading such conspiratorial content.
In an era where information is abundant yet misinformation is rampant, the ability to discern fact from fiction has never been more crucial. The spread of disinformation, fake news, and conspiracy theories can have profound impacts on our elections, healthcare systems, and national security, influencing public opinion and decision-making on critical issues. As news consumers, how do we develop the skills to navigate this complex information landscape? As a part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Elizabeth Schwab, Psy.D.
Elizabeth Schwab, Psy.D. is the founding chair of the graduate behavioral economics program and the program chair of the business psychology division at The Chicago School.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you. Can you tell us a bit about how you grew up?
I was born in raised in the suburbs of Long Grove, Illinois, but also grew up on sheep farm in Wisconsin. I attended the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where I earned my bachelor’s degree in psychology, before returning to the Chicagoland-area. For as long as I can remember, I’ve been interested in true crime and the American justice system — from how someone makes the decision to commit a crime to how cases are later challenged or when a prosecutor or other official doubles-down on disconfirming evidence. Learning about how our belief systems guide us, and can be overridden in some cases, is something that fascinates me as a person and a researcher.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?
I imagined that much of my work would be related to consumers in general, but it has actually shifted in a more specific way toward healthcare and how people, including physicians and others, make decisions for their patients. I am often called in to study physician decision-making, and the patient experience from initial diagnosis to treatment. More recently I’ve been asked to consult on vaccination intention and hesitation. This area of study and what’s happening currently within politics really prompted my consideration of conspiracy theories in everyday decision-making.
Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that will help people?
I am working on research to better understand how we can strengthen relationships through empathy and dialogue with those who are different from us, particularly when it comes to political differences. One thing I’ve learned is that we can still appreciate and value a person in our lives even if we don’t fully agree with their belief systems. But the foundation for any of that rests on empathy for others.
This may seem obvious but it is helpful to articulate it. Can you tell us a bit why disinformation and fake news is so harmful for our society? Can you share some examples?
Disinformation creates false narratives that can breed antisocial behavior and further divide society, particularly around major, global issues that require a collective and cohesive effort such as addressing climate change, preventing disease, and maintaining a democratic government. Disinformation also often leads to harmful discrimination against others. With the advent of disinformation, we have seen increases in antisemitism, efforts to erase the lived experience of transgender people, and more.
It’s important to remember that conspiracy theories are nothing new. and they’ve ranged from witch hunts and anti-vaccine rhetoric to genocide and the Holocaust. In today’s society, more recent conspiracy theories have affected the way we understand our government (and whether we trust them or not) and healthcare-related decisions — which has led to the resurgence of some diseases like mumps and measles.
Why do you think this has become such a huge problem in recent years?
Information, including misinformation and disinformation, has become much more accessible with social media channels that enable anyone with an account to broadcast content as if it is fact. Literally anyone from anywhere can publish news and information in the same ways as even the most credible and authoritative information sources — and that’s exactly the problem. This access, combined with an overall decline in institutional trust and trust in traditional media sources, has created a dangerous environment where the alternative is being embraced as mainstream.
That said, I think we’ve come to a point in our society where people are trying to manage the abundance of information that they have access to — of course, it takes quite a bit of cognitive work to reconcile it all. Conspiracy theories can be a tempting tool to help make sense of it all and to manage the dissonance that results from having to manage disparate pieces of information.
How does one distinguish between credible news sources and those that are prone to spreading disinformation?
This continues to be more and more difficult; so much so that some schools and universities now offer media literacy curriculums to help students better navigate their access to information.
The foundation to becoming a smart news consumer is to be a mindful news consumer. Many consume news on social media channels that rely on the endless “doom scroll” to retain their audience. This behavior leads to disassociation, which makes it difficult for our minds to process the information that is being presented.
I recommend setting some limits on the amount of time spent on these channels, and the types of content that is being consumed. It’s fun and fine to watch silly dance routines, cat videos, or to save helpful “life hacks” you find on social media; but information about world events, local news, health information, etc. requires more attention or mindshare to be meaningfully understood and acted on. So, consider other sources where you can consume this type of information and be thoughtful about selecting a variety of sources such as traditional news outlets like your local newspaper or television news, institutional sources such as governmental organizations, elected officials, and nonprofits, and corporate media.
Of course, none of this is a substitute for community integration. Simply being an active member of your local community helps people obtain valuable information and participate in social behaviors that will help them overcome their exposure to disinformation and make life more enjoyable overall.
What exactly is the problem with conspiracy theories? Why can’t a conspiracy be true?
The reality is — they can be true or considered true until they can be disproven. There are numerous historical examples — consider Watergate, or when there was a time that scientific evidence actually pointed to the Earth being at the center of our planetary system. Another consideration is the impact of some of this thinking — are all conspiracy theories harmful? Probably not. I don’t particularly fear “flat Earthers,” as one example.
Conspiracy theories are merely a tool for us to make sense of our world, however, if we are working with information that is inaccurate, that’s when the outcome of relying on these beliefs can be negative or even dangerous — especially if we use false or disproven conspiracy theories to make decisions. These theories provide a false sense of security, which is what makes them so enticing. Conspiracies falsely attribute the behaviors of influential individuals and organizations to help explain events or phenomena that are hard to make sense of. When we are unsure about why or how events like mass shootings, a pandemic, or financial distress have occurred, we want to find answers to resolve the cognitive dissonance between our perception of how our world should be and its reality. In only very rare circumstances is there truth to conspiracies, however, and they more often than not create a more erratic and dangerous environment than existed before.
Its important to continually take in new (and accurate) information and be prepared to update our thinking. Where would we be if we had ignored scientific data that later proved our planets orbit the sun in favor of our prior beliefs? But consider this too: conspiracies have to fail in order for us to identify and confirm their presence — which is quite the double-bind.
What psychological factors contribute to the belief in and spread of conspiracy theories?
There are several cognitive biases that lead to one’s belief in and the spread of conspiracy theories. .First, as conspiracies spread on social media and throughout society, availability bias lends unfounded credibility; that is, our reliance on information that is recent and easily recalled to explain a situation or event that has occurred. Attribution bias is another harmful effect of conspiracy theories that can further their spread. We see this in conspiracies that are racist or otherwise discriminatory at their core in that an attributional error is made based on the perception of one person or a group of people’s characters versus their actual behavior. Finally, confirmation bias is the tendency to seek information that confirms an existing belief, whether it is factual or not –its often used as a tool of sorts to resolve feelings of dissonance as mentioned above. Social media makes it easy for us to find likeminded individuals and to limit our exposure to only those who share our beliefs in conspiracies. This makes it seem as though everyone is on the same page even after conspiracies have been debunked. Confirmation bias (associated with the fear of making the wrong decision) is heavily seen in vaccine hesitancy and the spread of mis- and disinformation about childhood vaccines among parents.
In-group thinking and collective narcissism are big factors as well (and one we can easily observe these days). Researchers have referred to the tendency to use groups to elevate self-esteem as “collective narcissism,” involving the belief that individuals within a group possess qualities or information that makes them superior to others — and that those outside the groups don’t understand the in-group’s worth. This goes beyond the typical in-group pride commonly experienced and observed, leading to prejudice and aggression toward others, leading in-group members to characterize those outside of the group as hostile and threatening (Golec de Zavala & Lantos, 2020).
Can you give us a few ways to identify or spot fake news and disinformation? If you can please give us some examples.
One of the ways to spot fake news and disinformation is via our emotions. If you feel your heart rate going up or your blood pressure rising, its highly likely you are reading something that has been crafted in a particular way to elicit a stressful or emotional reaction. Disinformation messages also leverage words that evoke fear and disgust, and capitalize on the use of “us vs. them” language — especially to leverage those feelings of “in-group” belongingness.
Can you give us a few ways to identify a conspiracy theory? If you can please give us some examples.
There’s no easy answer to this since we know that only unsuccessful conspiracies are discovered. A smart news consumer will think about how zero-sum the theory is — if its blaming an entire group of people, for example, its unlikely its true. But again — conspiracies do exist, so you’ve got to find a balance between thinking carefully about the information you read and not getting carried away by inflammatory rhetoric.
What should one do after they have identified disinformation? Should they simply ignore it?
It depends on how widely disseminated the disinformation is. Even though we have many bots on social media sites, studies show the main driver for the spread of disinformation is actually individuals. If you can intervene on an individual basis including on yourself — that’s a start. And its important to be more mindful of the type of information you share with others. Don’t just hit that share or repost button.
Can you please share your “5 Things Everyone Should Know To Become A Smart News Consumer?”
1. Be a mindful consumer of information. Avoid the doom-scroll and make time to thoughtfully consume information from a variety of sources. We all have limited time, so consider the information that is most important to your life and focus on that topic. For some, it’s local news and for others it will be developments on other topics that they care about like parenting or politics. Make sure you take the time to focus on the information that matters to you, and to fully process that information in the context of your own life.
2. Diversify your sources of information. Political discourse in particular has led to a tremendous divide amongst individuals, communities, and the information sources they consume. Whether you identify as conservative, moderate, progressive — or something else entirely — it’s OK and a good practice to consume information from many perspectives. Going outside our “bubbles” helps expand our knowledge, build empathy, and more fully understand the world around us.
3. Create and maintain boundaries around news consumption. To be more mindful, consider setting some limits on how you consume news and information. If you, like me, always had the television news in the background while growing up, consider switching to music or white noise and save your TV time for when you are more focused on the information being presented. Social media users may consider placing some limits on the amount of time they spend on their preferred channels and/or avoid some channels altogether.
4. Report false information and block social media accounts that spread it. When you do encounter information that is clearly false, discriminatory, or misleading on social media channels, be sure to report it as such. Doing so will help ensure these accounts are properly monitored, and the action will further help curate your feed to avoid showing you such information in the future. These actions also de-incentivize individuals from spreading mis- and disinformation by reducing their visibility and engagement.
5. Do not share false information to make others aware that it is false. This seems counterintuitive, but sharing a post that contains false information only serves to increase the visibility and engagement of that content which, in turn, will ensure the social media channels’ algorithms serve it to more users. Instead, create your own, new post with correct information or simply report and block those spreading such conspiratorial content.
In your opinion, what role do social media platforms play in the propagation of fake news, and how can they be held accountable?
Social media platforms themselves have asked for more regulation to help reduce the spread of fake news. Until there are policies that equally enforce regulations on social media platforms, competition for users’ attention will take precedence.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
To treat others, even those who don’t share our beliefs, with empathy and respect.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
You can learn more about our psychology programs and latest research at www.thechicagoschool.edu.
This was very inspiring and informative. Thank you so much for the time you spent on this interview!
About The Interviewer: David Leichner is a veteran of the Israeli high-tech industry with significant experience in the areas of cyber and security, enterprise software and communications. At Cybellum, a leading provider of Product Security Lifecycle Management, David is responsible for creating and executing the marketing strategy and managing the global marketing team that forms the foundation for Cybellum’s product and market penetration. Prior to Cybellum, David was CMO at SQream and VP Sales and Marketing at endpoint protection vendor, Cynet. David is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Jerusalem Technology College. He holds a BA in Information Systems Management and an MBA in International Business from the City University of New York.
Becoming a Smart News Consumer: Elizabeth Schwab On How To Spot Disinformation, Fake News, And… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.