Can You Spot COVID-19 Misinformation?

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Can You Spot COVID-19 Misinformation? We’re all seeking the latest information on the COVID-19 pandemic and what might be coming next. But how can we spot and avoid the false information that is also circulating, especially on social media? Here are some things to look out for. Have you received a message from your friend Did you see a statement being shared on social that says her aunt/teacher/colleague knows networks that looks like it has come from the someone who works in the ER and has the government or a health authority? following information? If so: Be cautious. If so: Be a detective. Lots of copy and paste It may be ‘imposter rumors are spread content’, which is this way. when it’s not. Action: try pasting the Action: social networks. If you website of the organization see lots of examples, it quoted and check whether has likely travelled a long the information on their way before it got to you. site is a match. Maybe someone sent you a list of top tips to Did you see that very dramatic video on social media avoid the virus, like eating certain foods or using showing the latest updates relating to COVID-19? home remedies? If so: Be skeptical. If so: Look closer. There’s no food or Sometimes videos and supplement that can stop pictures being shared on you getting this virus, social media aren’t quite and there’s currently no what they seem. treatment - you can only try to manage the symptoms. Action: try reverse image searching pictures ? Action: consult the latest to see if they have been guidelines from the World used before. And pay a Health Organisation and regular visit to trusted your country’s and state’s news providers to stay health authorities. up to date. © 2020 Thomson Reuters TR1060188/04-20.

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1 Validation of a Novel Climate Change Denial Measure Using Item
1 Validation of a Novel Climate Change Denial Measure Using Item Response Theory Mr. George Lorama*,, Dr. Mathew Linga, Mr. Andrew Heada, Dr. Edward J.R. Clarkeb a Deakin University, Geelong, Australia, Misinformation Lab, School of Psychology b Federation University, Mount Helen, Australia, School of Health and Life Sciences * Corresponding Author, Misinformation Lab, Deakin University, Locked Bag 20001, Geelong VIC 3220, Australia. Email address: [email protected] Declarations of Interest: All authors declare that no conflict of interest exists. Acknowledgements: This work was supported by Deakin University (4th Year Student Research Funding; 4th Year Publication Award). 2 Abstract Climate change denial persists despite overwhelming scientific consensus on the issue. However, the rates of denial reported in the literature are inconsistent, potentially as a function of ad hoc measurement of denial. This further impacts on interpretability and integration of research. This study aims to create a standardised measure of climate change denial using Item Response Theory (IRT). The measure was created by pooling items from existing denial measures, and was administered to a U.S. sample recruited using Amazon MTurk (N = 206). Participants responded to the prototype measure as well as being measured on a number of constructs that have been shown to correlate with climate change denial (authoritarianism, social dominance orientation, mistrust in scientists, and conspiracist beliefs). Item characteristics were calculated using a 2-parameter IRT model. After screening out poorly discriminating and redundant items, the scale contained eight items. Discrimination indices were high, ranging from 2.254 to 30.839, but item difficulties ranged from 0.437 to 1.167, capturing a relatively narrow band of climate change denial.
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