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MISINFORMATION HAS NEVER been more talked about in Ireland than during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The spread of fake news never really took hold in Ireland in the same way it did in many other countries, but more false information has been shared in Ireland in recent months than ever before.
Some people have used the pandemic, and people’s valid concerns and fears, to deliberately create false information – often dubbed disinformation – in a bid to dupe others or see how far the rumour goes.
Most people who share incorrect information do so unwittingly and without any malicious intent. But what makes some people more likely than others to share, and believe, false stories? And why do people create them in the first place?
In the latest article in our series on misinformation, TheJournal.ie explores why misinformation is shared and how false memories can be created by a person who encounters fake news.
Pádraig Walsh, a behavioural psychologist, said many factors could be at play when a person, knowingly or unknowingly, shares misinformation.
Walsh told TheJournal.ie that groupthink often plays a major role.
He explained that when people view information online, they experience different biases – in particular cognitive bias – where individuals create their own subjective reality, and confirmation bias – a tendency to seek out and favour information that confirms their beliefs.
Much of this is linked to the echo chambers we create for ourselves online – by primarily engaging with people who have similar beliefs and opinions to ourselves, the majority of what we view on social media tends to align with and reinforce the views we already have.
Walsh compared the echo chambers people experience on social media to the ones we create on streaming platforms.
“If I’m on Netflix or on Spotify, but I’m struggling to find other programmes or music, the algorithms that are created will only feed me stuff that I’ve already shown an interest in. And the same thing happens with Facebook and Instagram – I’ll only get the kind of liberal views that me and my peer group support so that’s the echo chamber that is created.
“So everything that I see confirms my beliefs already. So, [the algorithm] suggests content that fits into our worldview and feeds into confirmation bias.”
Walsh said most people don’t share misinformation out of malicious intent, instead being motivated by intentions they view as good – they want to let people know something important, they want to be helpful, they want to be part of the conversation.
He explained that many people try to evaluate their own beliefs by comparing them to those held by others.
“Our self image is framed by the feedback that we get from others. So for instance, if I am trying to ascertain if I’m rich or not what I’ll do is I’ll look at the neighbours beside me and I’ll see whether they have things that are better or not.
“If I’m trying to figure out if I’m running a good 5k race, rather than just running against myself, I’ll compare myself to others, to know if I’m fast or slow. And the same thing applies to our beliefs and our attitudes.
“So, if I believe that I am a concerned citizen and I want to evaluate that belief, I might share something that says schools are going to be closed for the next few weeks, or shops are running out of food, for example.
“I want to project that self-image, and the feedback that I get from others is going to confirm that for me. So that self-image is then framed by others. So I might see myself as a concerned citizen so I share information that might be relevant.
“And then what happens is, other people within my social group will reinforce that because they might share similar beliefs and attitudes, and we have this echo chamber created by the algorithm.”
‘I can’t believe they’re doing that’
Walsh said people’s beliefs are reinforced, and they are more likely to share similar information on social media in the future, if others reply to their posts saying things like ‘Thanks for sharing that’, ‘That’s really helpful to know’, ‘I can’t believe they’re doing that’.
“If people in your peer group are responding in a positive way they’re reinforcing this, and it’s more likely that you will share that type of information or something related to that theme in the future because that’s getting you more likes or more interaction.”
He said people are also regularly influenced by negativity bias – humans are more inclined to focus on bad news or a post containing negative information or misinformation.
“If we read the news, that negativity bias comes out because our attention will be drawn toward the information that is more negative or is more shocking or might have bigger implications for us, regardless of the accuracy or the reliability of that information.”
Walsh explained that this has an evolutionary context. For as long as humans have existed, they have been “predisposed to pay more attention to those things that might be perceived as a threat” in order to project themselves.
He said this is part of the reason that negative posts, such as ones incorrectly stating the army will start to patrol the streets or that shops are going to run out of food, are so widely shared.
“We are more hyper alert to any of this negative ‘news’ because it threatens our survival,” he explained.
People are fatigued
Walsh said another reason misinformation about Covid-19 in particular took off in Ireland was because of fatigue. People are tired, worried and just trying to get by.
“We’re more likely to share this stuff when we’re tired, when we’re fatigued.”
He added that, because of this same tiredness, people are also “less likely to actually open the article [they are sharing], never mind read it, never mind fact-check it”.
Walsh noted that during the pandemic, on top of this fatigue, many people have been checking their phones more often.
“We’re very tired, we’re checking our phones and checking social media, so this is primed for people to act on emotional feelings rather than rational deduction,” he noted.
Determining why people create fake news, Walsh said, is less clear cut. Some people want to take credit for it, but most seem happy to “sow the seed and then take a step back and just watch what happens”.
In terms of the messages incorrectly claiming the Defence Forces would be patrolling the streets as the country went into lockdown, which were widely shared on platforms like WhatsApp and Facebook at the start of the pandemic, Walsh said “it didn’t seem like any kind of coordinated or well thought-out strategy”.
“It just seems like somebody, individually, creating something just to create a bit of divilment rather than it being more than that.”
Whatever the intention, he added that if something along those lines is widely shared and believed, the consequences can be “drastic” on some people’s mental health in terms of worry and anxiety.
Creating false memories
Ciara Greene, an associate professor at UCD’s School of Psychology, agrees that people who are fatigued are more likely to believe misinformation and even create false memories about it.
Greene said the “energy budget” in people’s brains may already be at full capacity – because they’re stressed or anxious about Covid-19, for example – when they encounter fake news, making them more susceptible to believe it.
“If your resources are all used up by being anxious, by being worried, by being absolutely overloaded by all of this kind of information, and it’s just constant, then you might not really have those cognitive abilities available to say, ‘Well on this particular story I’m going to stop and I’m going to think and I’m going to look and see whether this holds water and is there any evidence presented for it’,” she explained.
“That kind of cognitive overload – having so much of this stuff coming at you – can just make you go with your gut intuition, rather than stopping and reasoning. Sometimes, of course, our intuition is right, but sometimes it’s not and that’s what trips us up.”
Greene and her colleagues at UCD and UCC recently carried out an online study on fake news, in collaboration with TheJournal.ie. About 4,500 people took part and the answers provided by almost 3,800 people were analysed.
The outstanding participants were removed from the final analysis as they may have admitted to looking up some of the information online, or failed to tick boxes to prove they were paying attention throughout the survey.
More women that men took part in the survey; the gender breakdown was as follows: 2,487 (66.4%) women, 1,252 (33.4%) men and seven people (0.2%) who identified as other.
The mean age was 46, and overall age range from 18 to 101 years. Each person who took part in the study was shown four true news stories relating to the Covid-19 pandemic, and four fake stories.
These false stories were created by the researchers and designed to be very similar to the kinds of misinformation stories that have circulated in recent weeks and months. The fake stories stated the following:
Approximately one in five (22.1%; 807 people) participants had a false memory of at least one fake story, and many others reported that the stories felt familiar.
Many participants provided detailed descriptions of how they felt when they first encountered the story – something which never actually happened.
For example, on reading the story about the vaccine, participants who remembered this story reported feeling “shocked”, “worried” and “concerned”; one participant noted that they were “very disappointed that the trials weren’t going well” and “glad that the whistleblower spoke up”.
Greene noted that 22% may seem high, but previous studies carried out by researchers on topics such as Brexit and the Eighth Amendment referendum found that 40% and almost 50% of participants respectively reported false memories about news stories that were not true.
Greene said the higher number of false memories in those surveys make sense because people are more likely to believe stories that back up their own partisan view – something that is less likely when dealing with Covid-19 stories as the issue is less political.
Impact on behaviour
Researchers also assessed participants’ intention to engage in a series of behaviours over the next few months, including the behaviours targeted by the fake stories.
Having a false memory for a fake story significantly affected participants behavioural intentions: people who ‘remembered’ the stories about chilli peppers and coffee had stronger intentions to eat more spicy food or drink more coffee over the next several months, while people who ‘remembered’ the stories about the Covid-19 vaccine or contact-tracing app were less willing to get the vaccine or download the app, once available.
Participants were debriefed at the end of the study to make sure they understood which stories were fake – they were not aware of the purpose of the study until afterwards.
Researchers then followed up with participants one week later and found that there was no residual effect of false memories on behavioural intentions.
Greene said it was worrying but not surprising to see that exposure to false news could impact people’s behaviour. In the study people were debriefed, but in real life people exposed to misinformation often continue to believe it for some time and amend their behaviour accordingly.
“Of course, for ethical reasons, we weren’t able to see how long those effects will last. In this study we went to extraordinary lengths to make sure that we debriefed people, to make sure that they they knew what stories were fake, what stories were true.
“And we followed those people up after a week and the behavioural effects were no longer evident. In the middle of a pandemic, you don’t want to send people off with a false belief about what’s going to help or harm them,” Greene said.
Warning didn’t have an impact
Participants who scored higher on a general knowledge test about Covid-19 were less susceptible to false memories, but those who reported feeling very anxious about the pandemic, or felt they were at high risk of catching the virus, were more likely to form false memories.
“It wasn’t people who were generically anxious, we asked about that, it was more people who were specifically anxious about Covid and people who felt that they were that they were high-risk (in terms of contracting the virus),” Greene said.
Participants who reported spending more time reading about Covid-19 online and talking to family and friends about it, were also more susceptible to creating false memories.
Greene said part of the reason some people reported false memories may also be because they don’t want to admit not remembering something.
Prior to taking the survey, people were shown a number of warnings about Covid-19, including two about misinformation – one positively-framed warning, asking people to play their part in society by thinking carefully before sharing news stories, and a negatively-framed warning people that sharing misinformation is dangerous and irresponsible.
“In order to avoid drawing attention to the purpose of the study, we mixed these warnings in with other posters containing the usual public health guidance on social distancing, handwashing, etc.
“Participants were assigned to view either the positive or negative warning, or to one of two control conditions in which they didn’t see any misinformation warnings, Greene said.
She added that the researchers were surprised that seeing a misinformation warning before taking part in the survey appeared to have no impact on people’s answers.
“We were quite surprised, we found absolutely no effect whatsoever.
“It didn’t make any difference whether participants saw a warning at all, and it didn’t matter if they saw a positively or negatively framed warning,” she said.
Greene said the results of the study emphasise “the importance of thinking carefully before sharing or acting on stories you see online”.
“Consider the source of the story – does it come from a reputable media source? Are there links to primary sources, like peer-reviewed scientific findings?”
Greene advised people who are not sure about the accuracy of information they see online to consult an online fact-checking service, and “when in doubt, don’t share”.
Through 2016, deep fakes, Brexit and Trump, Ireland did not see misinformation in the same way or at the same level as other jurisdictions.
But since the first case of Covid-19 was confirmed, TheJournal.ie FactCheck has debunked or examined 75 claims about the coronavirus. Through that work, we have been able to track the pandemic’s impact on Ireland’s susceptibility to and relationship with fake news.
In this series, we will investigate some of the more notorious stories – who started them, and what effect they had on the population? We interrogate the atmosphere and tools that allowed the messages to spread – their R number as scary as Covid-19’s.
This new coronavirus may not be with us forever, but misinformation could be one of its deadly after-effects.
So now we ask: Is Ireland changed forever? See the full series here.
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I wonder if there would be a delay if ( God forbid) it was one of their own.
I somehow doubt it.
Just to clarify that I do not wish illness on any child.
Mike. my child also was diagnosed with brain cancer. in kids crumlin hospital there are two sections to the ward a general section probably around 8 rooms with 2 or4 beds from what i recall , they also had a couple of rooms that could be closed off for infections, There is also a section at the back where there are 6 room i think that are for special reasons where children are so sick and have completely lost their immune system, to get to this you have to go through a staging and gowning area removing shoes and coats and no visitors were allowed it was complete isolation. to get in here you have to be really really sick . my child was in here for about a month, During this time (and you might recall Pat kenny’s daughter being diagnosed with cancer ) pat kenny daughter came in for some treatment. now she didn’t need to be in this section at all and really should not have been there. but because of their status they were given one of the rooms, Both her parents and daughter were allowed to swan in and out and sometimes he would forget to take his shoes off. it was pretty disgusting that they were allowed to override procedure just because of who they were. so in answer to your question people with status defiantly get preferential treatment even at the expense of other children’s health .
I know the ward Denis and the hygiene protocol involved.
We partake in the drive4charity and we were brought on a guided tour.
We were only shown around outside and it was heartbreaking.
How is your wee one doing ?.
Getting back on topic, that is a harrowing and obscene account of “money talks”. The children on wards like that need a sterile environment and even the slightest infection could kill them.
5 years clear and doing very well in school. a joy to us everyday. to be honest before that I would not have been able to point kenny out in a crowd have no interest in rte or media like that. can tell you now I will remember his face to my grave. arrogant fcuker. putting other kids lives at risk. made our blood boil I can tell ya.
Denis I am so glad to hear that and many healthy years ahead to you all.
My Son was 3 months premature (25 years ago) and you should see the bloody size of him now.
I remember like yesterday the feeling of helplessness and panic.
I can’t in my wildest nightmare envisage what you were going through.
The thing about the “elite” is that they don’t know any other way and I don’t think they want to know.
I wouldn’t wish bad on any child on the planet regardless of their parentage and judging by your posts Denis I know you would think the same.
yeah agree its the feeling of helplessness that gets you the most. I work in engineering myself and can’t rest unless I’m fixing things, my mind is always on the go. I remember looking at my son and just thinking dispare that it was one thing I could not fix, and that all my skills were basically useless.
But it is amazing what they can do nowadays. Years and years ago your son would have had very little chance, mine as well probably. It’s great he came through that premature, I know it was hell for you. The team of doctors and nurses at that hospital and all others around the country deserve way more than what this government are doing. They need to cop on and pull the finger out and stop all this red tape crap when kids lives are at serious risk. sometimes you feel they need to be thrown in at the deep end just to see what normal people have to put up with. Not that you would wish that on anyone.
So now you know Minister, what are you going to do?
So Ms Kathleen Lynch you know about it so what are you going to do about it besides talk about it?
I was thinking just the same thing. Lynch is just flapping her lips the sake of making some sounds.
How can she not help to sort this out, surely she must understand the huge pressure and stress that the child’s parents are under and how such a situation affects the whole families health not just the poor child’s.
Some TD’s have a swinging brick instead of a heart.
That picture of poor Lucy has brought tears to my eyes. Every night I go in and kiss my kids good night and often stand there admiring them in their sleep and thinking how much I love them. I couldn’t begin to fathom the thinking of if that was my daughter lying there. My heart goes out to Lucy’s parents and Lucy herself. I hope so much she gets better.
To see what is happening here and all the layers of management and waste in the HSE just sickens me to the core. On one hand the government want to give free GP to kids under 6 and then on the other they are leaving a poor indefensible child to suffer through cancer without so much as providing the family a medical card to help with the costs.
Shame on you to the HSE and the Government. You really have sunk to the lowest levels now
too quick to roll out the red carpet to corporate tax avoiders whilst cutting medical cards for children.
”trust me” said minister lynch and it was at that point i stopped readinh
My little boy was diagnosed with cancer at 15 months and sadly lost his battle a year later.
We were given a medical card and it was one less thing we had to worry about.
This government really needs to cop on and get a grip.
MRs Lynch if you are aware of this issue then SORT it out instead of hand wringing
I am so sorry for your loss John. That must be every parents nightmare.
May he rest in peace.
Kathleen will do what they all do,…. What’s good for Kathleen
How can people honestly say they would vote for or support a government that chooses to save a couple of grand a year over ones life. It’s shameful. I dunno how any decent human being would stand over this.
Why the hell would we take her word for it? Politicians have very rarely proven themselves to anything but self-serving liars.
Well now you know and when are you going to issue the medical card? NO CARD, NO VOTES, NO EXCUSES
Give medical cards to the ones who need it, ie can’t afford health bills. Take it from those who can afford them. It is not going to be easy to figure out who is who but they should start somewhere.
It should be like the European model (universal healthcare for all).
Sorry, why was Leo Varadkar in Strasbourg and not here looking after his department? Secondly I wouldn’t trust anything any politican says about health. The system has gone from awful under Fianna Fail to abysmal under this government.
Totally agree Mary,it seems mister varadkar prefers to get involved in just about everything but what he is supposed to do.
I was prepared to give him the benifit of the doubt but he has shown that he is no better than those gone before him.
If your have cancer you should have an automatic entitlement to a medical card.. you easily forget where you came from Kathleen .. how can you sleep when you know the situation. .
Your aware of it. So…do something about it.
How many med cards did lynch get for people in her constituency just for a vote.Sickens me to hear this hypocrite inform a committee that she is aware of this young child position does nothing about it… why is it because she will not get her a vote……..Who makes these decisions Doctors employed by the HSE or pen pushing civil servants,..,Its not as if the child is going to go mad purchasing meds for her mothers pals…Its for the child the card…we will see a bonaza of card issuing as the election gets closer be like confetti at a wedding
Delighted she is familiar with my daughter Lucy’s Case, Lucy is an amazing child battling a horrible type of Cancer, thank you for your supportive comments , Angela
I wish you and your family all the best, having been there myself my thoughts are with you. people always say I don’t know what I would do or how I would cope if it happened to me. but whey you are thrown into the situation you just get on with it. eventually things sink in and it is hard, but you never give a second though to your kids well being and always will do anything for them.
We are paying enough taxes to have a good health care system!! So why don’t we have one?? We’re paying as much tax as other countries that can manage to put a good health system in place and people actually get something back for their taxes. This government just takes. Knowing about something and doing something about it are two different things. We’ve seen it this week with TFMR being shot down again. This government is more talk than action!
Ireland spends 8% of GDP on health. In comparison, France, Germany, Netherlands – all spend about 12% of GDP on health. (the USA spends 16%)
I’m sure if we increased the current spend by 50% (50% more nurses, doctors, etc) – we would get better care.
I don’t see any politicians saying we should be paying more tax for better healthcare – they all promise tax cuts (SF – no water tax, FG – less income tax etc).
If you know all about it minister, pick up your phone first thing in the morning, call the relevant people and get that poor kid sorted. What sort of disgusting individuals are making these decisions. Shame on you all in allocation of cards.
Why doesnt the Journal put in a FOI to the HSE enquiring as to how many politicians current or retired are in receipt or whose family members are in receipt of a medical card….Now that might make for interesting reading….
Also I hope this poor girl gets what she is entitled too, our healthcare system is shameful!
poor kathleen will never have to worry especially when she has our private at her disposal if she ever gets sick.
Trust a minister?..seriously. ..? It’s a bit like asking somebody to jump from plane and not falling..and to you Minister, trust has to be earned. .you’ve done nothing to earn that….just like ur salary!
@shane. Racism is alive and well in modern Ireland.
My comment was in response to a racist comment that had since been pulled.
Destroy them all in election
Now that the poor girls situation has been highlighted why the hell can’t they cut out the red tape and bureaucracy bullshit and just give her the card! As a mature student I got medical cards for myself, my wife and my two children without even applying for them! As my wife earns a decent wage we felt that we didn’t need them so sent them back, give her one of those!
Thanks Mark, I have now been offered over 50 medical cards from people who have said they do not need them sadly I can’t take one for Lucy
Still no accurate diagnostics or treatment available for the hundreds of Irish Lyme disease patients who are fundraising & travelling abroad in there droves for help.
And you can’t solve the problem with racism either…
Yet again the people of this country are being punished for actually working and earning a living. Do feck all for all your life and we’ll look after you, and your kids through sickness and health, work, pay taxes and try to be a contributing member of society and we’ll ride you and your family til it breaks you, and then rub it in if you do need something.
Where’s leo? I thought he was in charge…
He’ll probably pop up tomorrow with his opinions about education or something.
I hope he hasn’t climbed back into the closet
Lynch has just given the standard ministerial response which is to kick the can down the road, let somebody else deal with it and don’t raise your profile. Keep ticking along without actually doing anything of note or substance, ever, let the money roll in and then ride off into the sunset with the pension in the back pocket.
These people are parasites. I don’t know how they sleep at night, I couldn’t
I think it’s even worse when ministers know about the little girl’s suffering, shame on them.
“Trust me”……who in their right mind would trust you minister?
Trust me !! That’s the problem we don’t.
So beautiful
So peaceful
So sad
So very sad.
Being aware of Lucy’s story and others like it is a long way from doing something about it ! It is scandalous what this and other families are going through.
As someone from Cork I predict Kathleen Lynch’s time in government will be coming to an end in the next election.
Trust me……who in their right mind would trust you minister?
You just had to be racist didn’t you. Does it make you feel like a tough guy because you come across as ignorant.
Ye all saw Kenny’s reaction in the dail it was on TV so vote accordingly u will have your chance soon
So a doctor visit card is better than a medical card. What a load of rubbish
This is disgusting, they give cards to healthy people and deny those most in need purely to save money, GIVE THIS GIRL A CARD NOW.
That statement about the doctor visit card being better due to not having to pay prescription charges is partcularly stupid. How does she think people with such cards get their medicines other than paying for them full price? Did she really say that?
TRUST YOU!???? Seriously???????? This poor girl and her mother did- and how did you help them!!?!?!!??????!?? Hope cancer will eat U soon!
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