Right-wing authoritarianism, conspiracy mentality, and susceptibility to distorted alternative news
Frischlich Lena, Hellmann Jens H, Brinkschulte Felix, Becker Martin, Back Mitja D
Research article (journal) | Peer reviewedAbstract
media outlets have raised global concerns about the effects ofdistorted news on democratic process such as opinion formationand voting. Not all individuals are equally susceptible to distortednews. In three experimental studies (total N = 1,024), we demonstratethat (a) distorted alternative news are seen as less crediblecompared to journalist news; (b) the perceived credibility of distortednews is greater among right-wing authoritarians and conspiracy-minded individuals; (c) exposure to distorted news can biasthese types of individuals' attitudes about an unknown politicalcandidate; and (d) distorted news leads people in general todevelop less favorable attitudes toward the targeted candidate ascompared to journalist news
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Authors from the University of Münster
| Back, Mitja | Professorship for Psychologiscal Diagnostics and Personality Psychology (Prof. Back) Cluster of Excellence "Religion and Politics" |
| Frischlich, Lena | Professur für Kommunikationswissenschaft, Schwerpunkt: Onlinekommunikation (Prof. Quandt) |