The Government's Dividend: Complex Perceptions of Social Media Misinformation in China

Lu, Zhicong; Jiang, Yue; Lu, Cheng; Нааман, Мор; Wigdor, Daniel

doi:10.1145/3313831.3376612

Cited by 27 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…In some countries, such as Iran, social trust in the government is low, and individuals use less official media to access important information [32,33,34,35]. The low trust in the government can also cause individuals to have concerns and fears about their health.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The mediating effect of the cyberchondria and anxiety sensitivity in the association between problematic internet use, metacognition beliefs, and fear of COVID-19 among Iranian online population

Hashemi

Hosseinnezhad

Dini

et al. 2020

Heliyon

101

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With the rapid growth of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), individuals may try to find related medical information using the internet to overcome their fears. Under such circumstances, individuals with the features of cyberchondria, anxiety sensitivity, and metacognitive beliefs in negative thoughts may suffer more fears than those without these features. Therefore, the present study proposed a model to understand the associations between problematic internet use (PIU), cyberchondria, anxiety sensitivity, metacognition beliefs, and fear of COVID-19. Utilizing a cross-sectional online survey, 651 Iranians completed the following psychometric scales: Metacognition Questionnaire-30 (MCQ-30), Anxiety Sensitivity Questionnaire (ASI), Cyberchondria Severity Scale-Short Form (CSS-12), Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV–19S), and Generalized Problematic Internet Use Scale (GPIUS). Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to assess the proposed model via several fit indices. The indices include Tucker-Lewis index (TLI), comparative fit index (CFI), standardized root mean square residual (SRMR), and root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA). The fit indices (CFI = 0.948, TLI = 0.938, RMSEA = 0.053, and SRMR = 0.001) indicated the good fit between the data and the proposed model. Moreover, fear of COVID-19 was significantly and directly predicted by cyberchondria (β = 0.479, p < .001) and anxiety sensitivity (β = 0.286, p < .001). The relationship between PIU and cyberchondria with fear of COVID-19 was mediated significantly by anxiety sensitivity and metacognitive beliefs. Because fear of COVID-19 was found to be significantly associated with cyberchondria and anxiety sensitivity, healthcare providers may want to provide additional support for those with cyberchondria and anxiety sensitivity tendencies.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The mediating effect of the cyberchondria and anxiety sensitivity in the association between problematic internet use, metacognition beliefs, and fear of COVID-19 among Iranian online population

Hashemi

Hosseinnezhad

Dini

et al. 2020

Heliyon

101

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The credibility of information about the pandemic is the premise of findings of the study. To combat misinformation on social media, many online platforms in mainland China, such as WeChat and Weibo, have a customer report feature as the main strategy of fact-checking services, and continue to use and consult with information from trusted partners, including the government, academic institutions, and NGOs, when reviewing content [ 48 , 49 ]. Transparency and proactive communication are essential to early detection and containment of pandemics [ 50 ], which led to criticism of the Chinese government’s delayed early warning of the pandemic before its outbreak [ 51 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Active Role of the Internet and Social Media Use in Nonpharmaceutical and Pharmaceutical Preventive Measures against COVID-19

et al. 2022

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During the COVID-19 pandemic, does more internet and social media use lead to taking more- or less-effective preventive measures against the disease? A two-wave longitudinal survey with the general population in mainland China in mid-2020 found that during the COVID-19 pandemic, internet and social media use intensity promoted the adoption of nonpharmaceutical and pharmaceutical antipandemic measures. The first wave of data (n = 1014) showed that the more intensively people used the internet/social media, the more they perceived the threat of the pandemic, and took more nonpharmaceutical preventive measures (e.g., wearing masks, maintaining social distance, and washing hands) as a result. The second wave (n = 220) showed firstly the predicted relationship between internet/social media use intensity and the perceived threat of the pandemic and the adoption of nonpharmaceutical preventive measures by cross-lagged analysis; secondly, the predictive effect of internet/social media use on the adoption of pharmacological measures (i.e., willingness to vaccinate against COVID-19) and the mediating role of perceived pandemic threat were verified. The article concludes with a discussion of the role of the internet and social media use in the fight against COVID-19 in specific macrosocial contexts.

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“…This might be attributed to the difference in the internet between China and the US. Chinese cyberspace has long been overwhelmed with misinformation about health [ 51 ]. Thus, trust in the internet may need to become a very salient factor before Chinese people decide to use the internet as a source of cancer-related information.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Perceived Needs Versus Predisposing/Enabling Characteristics in Relation to Internet Cancer Information Seeking Among the US and Chinese Public: Comparative Survey Research

Zhang

Zhen

et al. 2021

J Med Internet Res

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Background Since the rise of the internet, online health information seeking has become a worldwide phenomenon. However, health and health communication are inherently culture bound. A data-driven cross-country comparison enables us to better understand how cultural factors moderate the association between individual-level determinants and online health information seeking. Objective The objective of the study was to examine similarities and differences in determinants of internet cancer information seeking between the US and Chinese general public (excluding cancer patients and survivors) under the framework of a behavioral model of health services use. Methods This study used Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS) 2017 (US data) and HINTS-China 2017 data to answer the research question. It focused on people with no cancer history and with internet access. For the HINTS 2017, the sample size was 2153; for the HINTS-China 2017, the sample size was 2358. To compare China and the United States, the researchers selected the same set of study variables for each dataset. Under the framework of the behavioral model of health services use, these predictors were predisposing factors, enabling factors, and need factors. Results In terms of the predisposing factors, a higher age, college degree or above, being currently unemployed, and having a family history of cancer were associated with internet cancer information seeking for the Chinese respondents; none of these factors were related to information seeking for the US respondents, although a lower age was associated with information seeking. Regarding the enabling conditions, lower trust in family members and friends as reliable information sources was the only factor associated with information seeking for the Chinese respondents, while no enabling factor was related to information seeking for the US respondents. Regarding the need factors, perceived health status was not related to information seeking for the Chinese respondents, while perception of poorer health condition was related to information seeking for the US respondents. Higher cancer fear was related to information seeking for both groups, but the magnitude of association was smaller for the Chinese respondents than for the US respondents. Conclusions Overall, under the framework of the behavioral model of health services use, the results based on multivariate logistic regression reveal clear patterns of cross-country/cultural differences in the factors associated with internet cancer information seeking behaviors: predisposing characteristics and enabling conditions are more important in China, while perceived needs are more significant in the US. Such differences might reflect possible US-China differences in job environment (eg, job pressure) and culture (individualism vs collectivism and family structure).

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The Government's Dividend: Complex Perceptions of Social Media Misinformation in China

Cited by 27 publications

References 23 publications

The mediating effect of the cyberchondria and anxiety sensitivity in the association between problematic internet use, metacognition beliefs, and fear of COVID-19 among Iranian online population

The mediating effect of the cyberchondria and anxiety sensitivity in the association between problematic internet use, metacognition beliefs, and fear of COVID-19 among Iranian online population

The Active Role of the Internet and Social Media Use in Nonpharmaceutical and Pharmaceutical Preventive Measures against COVID-19

Perceived Needs Versus Predisposing/Enabling Characteristics in Relation to Internet Cancer Information Seeking Among the US and Chinese Public: Comparative Survey Research

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