Prebunking Against Misinformation in the Modern Digital Age

Abstract

Although the COVID-19 vaccine has the potential to end the pandemic, the simultaneous infodemic has led to people questioning the safety of vaccines, lowered vaccination intentions, and given rise to dangerous health-related beliefs. Unfortunately, misinformation can be highly persuasive and misleading to the extent that even the most critical reader is no longer ‘immune’. In this chapter, we provide an overview of a long-term strategy for tackling misinformation in the modern digital age through the use of psychological inoculation interventions. In recent years, research has shown that low-dose exposures to misinformation and manipulation tactics can have inoculating effects amongst news consumers, making them more resistant to media manipulation and misinformation. This chapter highlights the scientific progress in the application of the theory, from its roots as a ‘vaccine’ against brainwashing in the 1960s, to the modern advancements that have demonstrated the promising effects of gamified interventions in tackling the infodemic.