Unveiling the Mechanisms of Online Health Rumor Dissemination: The Effects of Content Feature and Presentation Cues (Preprint)

Abstract

BACKGROUND The proliferation of online communities has significantly amplified the volume and spread of health rumors. In the absence of authoritative voices, users may unconsciously become disseminators of medically unsound information. Consequently, there is an urgent need to investigate the factors driving the dissemination of online health rumors. OBJECTIVE This study investigates how content feature (i.e., emotional valence) and presentation cues (i.e., rumor length and image presence) of online health rumors influence users’ perceived credibility and dissemination intention, aiming to uncover the mechanisms driving rumor propagation and offer insights for mitigating health rumors METHODS This study conducted two experiments. In Experiment 1, a 2x2 between-subjects design was used to examine the effects of emotional valence (dread rumors vs. wish rumors) and image presence (image present vs. image absent). Then, Experiment 2 introduced rumor length as an additional factor to explore the interaction effects between rumor length, image presence and emotional valence. RESULTS The findings indicate that dread rumors, long rumors and those accompanied by images are perceived as more credible. Furthermore, the three-way interaction between rumor length, image presence, and emotional valence exerts a significant effect on perceived credibility. Additionally, perceived credibility serves as a mediator between emotional valence and dissemination intention, as well as presentation cues and dissemination intention. Moreover, personal involvement strengthens the link between perceived credibility and dissemination intention, while health anxiety weakens it. CONCLUSIONS This study deepens the theoretical understanding of online health rumor dissemination by highlighting the complex interaction effects between content feature (i.e., emotional valence) and presentation cues (i.e., rumor length and image presence) on perceived credibility and dissemination intention. The findings also offer practical guidance for platform managers on how to effectively monitor and intervene in the spread of health rumors.