A Glimpse into the Brain-Bending Way We Appraise Health Information

A Glimpse into the Brain-Bending Way We Appraise Health Information

While the problem of mis/disinformation is not new, the advent of social media has magnified the reach and impact of unverified and harmful health information. What underlying skills, competencies and biases allow some people to sail past junk science and others to capsize? There is a relationship between the intersection of media and health literacies – referred to here as Media Health Literacy and health beliefs/outcomes. But an individual’s appraisal of health information appears to be more susceptible to confirmation bias - only trusting information that confirms pre-existing beliefs - than more disembodied behavioral decision-making processes.

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