Newswise — EVANSTON, IL -- Even when people know better, they often rely on inaccurate or misleading information to make future decisions. But why are we so easily influenced by false statements?
David Rapp’s research suggests that people quickly encode the inaccurate statements into memory because critical evaluation and deliberation require more mental resources.
Later, we naturally and regularly retrieve the stored incorrect information. “If memories for what we’ve seen or heard are readily available, we tend to think we can rely on them,” Rapp said.
Intriguingly, Rapp’s findings also suggest that even when people know little about a source, they still treat information from that source as credible.
Rapp can discuss the rise of fake news, as well as why common sense strategies to combat misinformation don’t necessarily work.
GET THE FULL STORY AT sesp.northwestern.edu/bigresearch
David Rapp, Professor, Northwestern University’s School of Education and Social Policy can be reached at [email protected].
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