Information: a missing component in understanding and mitigating social epidemics

Abstract

Social epidemics or behaviorally based non-communicable diseases are becoming an increasingly important problem in developed countries including the United States. It is the aim of our paper to propose a previously understudied aspect of the spread of social epidemics, the role of information in both causing and mitigating social epidemics. In this paper, we ask, can information be harmful, contagious, and a causal factor in social epidemics? In the spread of biological epidemics, the causal agents are biological pathogens such as bacteria or viruses. We propose that in the spread of social epidemics, one of the causal agents is harmful information, which is increasing exponentially in the age of the internet. We ground our idea in the concept of the meme and define the concept of an infopathogen as harmful information that can spread or intensify a social epidemic. Second, we ask, what are the best tools to understand the role of information in the spread of social epidemics? The epidemiological triad that includes a host, agents (and vectors), and the environment is extended into a quad by including information agents. The quad includes the role of information technologies as vectors and the impact of the social environment. The “life cycles” of pathogens in biological epidemics and infopathogens in social epidemics are compared, along with mitigations suggested by the epidemiological quad. Challenges to the theory of infopathogens, including the complexities associated with the spread of memes and the role of behavior in the spread of epidemics are discussed. Implications of the theory including the classification of harmfulness, the freedom of speech, and the treatment of infected individuals are also considered. We believe the application of the epidemiological quad provides insights into social epidemics and potential mitigations. Finally, we stress that infopathogens are only part of social epidemic development; susceptible hosts, a favorable environment, and availability of physical agents are all also required.

Investigating the Effects of Misinformation as Infopathogens: Developing a Model and Thought Experiment

“…The concept of an infopathogen is built upon the idea of a harmful meme (or group or memes) that is spread from person to person but more importantly through information networks such as social media. Magarey and Trexler (2020) provide a detailed justification for the analogy that memes behave like biological pathogens. This includes examples of research on violence, demonstrating its ability to spread like an epidemic (Slutkin et al 2018a(Slutkin et al , 2018b.…”

“…Transmissible causes of suffering in biological systems are called pathogens. A useful framework for use in studying suffering caused by misinformation can be built from the concept of an infopathogen, which is transmissible information that can result in harm, through processes such as social epidemics (Magarey and Trexler 2020). A useful example system in which to develop this framework and its applications is the COVID-19 pandemic which began in 2020.…”

“…In order to address these research questions, it is also important to understand the dynamics of misinformation spread. These dynamics can be understood through the use of a biological analogy, beginning with the idea of harm caused by misinformation spreading as a social epidemic (Magarey and Trexler 2020).…”

“…Information, including misinformation, has been shown to be contagious (Jin et al 2013;Tambuscio et al 2015;Kucharski 2016) and to play a role in social epidemics (Christakis and Fowler 2013). Building on the concept of the meme, an infopathogen has been defined as harmful information that can spread or intensify a social epidemic (Magarey and Trexler 2020). The definition of a meme in the context of cognition is that a meme is an idea, being complex and a memorable unit, that can be spread by vehicles that are physical manifestations of the meme (Brodie 2009).…”

Human information behavior during the Covid-19 health crisis. A literature review

“…So far, actions to change behavior have been inspired by the "information deficit" paradigm with the understanding that reasoning enlightened by information and education is sufficient to change human behavior and that the provision of scientific information must necessarily lead humans to change (Luetz, Margus, & Prickett, 2020). Recently, attention has also been paid to the role of harmful information spread through technologies in consolidating social epidemics (Magarey & Trexler, 2020). However, years of research in the health sector show that human behavior tends to be irrational, governed by social norms and driven by motivations that do not necessarily and exclusively derive from access to scientific and authoritative information (Kelly & Barker, 2016).…”