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PubMed2003

Event memory and misinformation effects in a gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla).

Event memory and misinformation effects were examined in an adult male gorilla ( Gorilla gorilla gorilla). The gorilla witnessed a series of unique events, involving a familiar person engaging in a novel behavior (experiment 1), a novel person engaging in a novel behavior (experiment 2), or the presentation of a novel object (experiment 3). Following a 5- to 10-min retention interval, a tester gave the gorilla three photographs mounted on wooden cards: a photograph depicting the correct person or object and two distractor photographs drawn from the same class. The gorilla responded by returning a photograph. If correct, he was reinforced with food. Across three experiments, the gorilla performed significantly above chance at recognizing the target photograph. In experiment 4, the gorilla showed at-chance performance when the event was followed by misinformation (a class-consistent, but incorrect photograph), but significantly above-chance performance when no misinformation occurred (either correct photograph or no photograph). Although the familiarity can account for these data, they are also consistent with an episodic-memory interpretation.

Animals↗

PubMed2002

Position of the American Dietetic Association: food and nutrition misinformation.

It is the position of the American Dietetic Association that food and nutrition misinformation can have harmful effects on the health and economic status of consumers. It is the role of nationally credentialed dietetics professionals to advocate for and promote sound, science-based nutrition information to the public, function as primary nutrition educators to health professionals, and actively counter and correct food and nutrition misinformation. The federal government has recognized the strong link between nutrition and health in recent years. Consumers are taking greater responsibility for self-care and are hungry for food and nutrition information, creating opportunities for nutrition misinformation, health fraud, and quackery to flourish. The media are consumers' leading source of nutrition information, but news reports rarely provide enough context for consumers to interpret the advice given. Promoters turn preliminary findings into sales pitches with baseless claims, often for the sole purpose of economic gain. Effective nutrition communication is consumer focused and presented with sufficient context to allow consumers to weigh the information and determine whether it applies to his or her unique needs. Nationally credentialed dietetics professionals are best prepared to communicate sound advice and scientific advances about nutrition. These dietetics professionals have a responsibility to take an active role in providing accurate, easily understood food and nutrition information, interpreting emerging research for media and consumers and encouraging consumers to look for credentialed dietetics professionals as nutrition experts.

Consumer Advocacy↗

PubMed2003

The power of the spoken word: sociolinguistic cues influence the misinformation effect.

We investigated whether the sociolinguistic information delivered by spoken, accented postevent narratives would influence the misinformation effect. New Zealand subjects listened to misleading postevent information spoken in either a New Zealand (NZ) or North American (NA) accent. Consistent with earlier research, we found that NA accents were seen as more powerful and more socially attractive. We found that accents per se had no influence on the misinformation effect but sociolinguistic factors did: both power and social attractiveness affected subjects' susceptibility to misleading postevent suggestions. When subjects rated the speaker highly on power, social attractiveness did not matter; they were equally misled. However, when subjects rated the speaker low on power, social attractiveness did matter: subjects who rated the speaker high on social attractiveness were more misled than subjects who rated it lower. There were similar effects for confidence. These results have implications for our understanding of social influences on the misinformation effect.

Attitude↗

PubMed1992

AIDS prevention: myths, misinformation and health policy perceptions.

This research assesses the degree and type of prevailing misinformation about AIDS transmission, as well as the relationship between misinformation, prior information exposure, and perceptions of health policy issues related to AIDS. It also identifies pockets of misinformation to provide a basis for targeting health policy and AIDS education campaigns.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

PubMed2005

Habitual acceptance of misinformation: examination of individual differences and source attributions.

This study identifies individuals who are habitually susceptible to accepting postevent misinformation across testing on three separate events. The results indicate that those individuals identified as habitually susceptible exhibited higher dissociation scores and less of an association between memory accuracy and confidence than did the individuals identified as nonhabitually susceptible. When they were asked to identify the source of the remembered information, similar patterns of source attributions were found for all individuals when they were responding correctly and incorrectly to nonmisinformation and when they were correctly rejecting items of misinformation. Importantly, from a source-monitoring perspective, individuals identified as habitually susceptible demonstrated a different pattern of source attributions than did those classified as nonhabitually susceptible when they were accepting misinformation. Habitually susceptible individuals were as likely to attribute the source of their memory incorrectly to something seen in the experienced event as to attribute it correctly to something read after the fact.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

New evidence on the suggestibility of memory: the role of retrieval-induced forgetting in misinformation effects.

Extending recent work that has demonstrated that the act of remembering can result in the inhibition of related items in memory, the present research examined whether retrieval-induced forgetting could provide a mechanism for explaining misinformation effects. Specifically, the authors found in their first study that the inhibition of critical items rendered the recollection of postevent information more likely in a subsequent test of memory. The authors established in their second study that when guided retrieval practice and final recall tests were separated by 24 hr, retrieval-induced forgetting failed to emerge and misinformation effects were absent. In contrast, a delay of 24 hr between initial encoding and guided retrieval practice produced not only retrieval-induced forgetting but also misinformation effects.

Adult↗

PubMed2001

Age-related changes in the misinformation effect.

In these experiments, we examined the relation between age-related changes in retention and age-related changes in the misinformation effect. Children (5- and 6- and 11- and 12-year-olds) and adults viewed a video, and their memory was assessed immediately, 1 day, or 6 weeks later (Experiment 1). There were large age-related differences in retention when participants were interviewed immediately and after 1 day, but after the 6-week delay, age-related differences in retention were minimal. In Experiment 2, 11- and 12-year-olds and adults were exposed to neutral, leading, and misleading postevent information 1 day or 6 weeks after they viewed the video. Exposure to misleading information increased the number of commission errors, particularly when participants were asked about peripheral aspects of the video. At both retention intervals, children were more likely than adults to incorporate the misleading postevent information into their subsequent verbal accounts. These findings indicate that age-related changes in the misinformation effect are not predicted by age-related changes in retention.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Misinformation, partial knowledge and guessing in true/false tests.

CONTEXT: Examiners disagree on whether or not multiple choice and true/false tests should be negatively marked. Much of the debate has been clouded by neglect of the role of misinformation and by vagueness regarding both the specification of test types and "partial knowledge" in relation to guessing. Moreover, variations in risk-taking in the face of negative marking have too often been treated in absolute terms rather than in relation to the effect of guessing on test unreliability. OBJECTIVES: This paper aims to clarify these points and to compare the ill-effects on test reliability of guessing and of variable risk-taking. METHODS: Three published studies on medical students are examined. These compare responses in true/false tests obtained with both negative marking and number-right scoring. The studies yield data on misinformation and on the extent to which students may fail to benefit from distrusted partial knowledge when there is negative marking. A simple statistical model is used to compare variations in risk-taking with test unreliability due to blind guessing under number-right scoring conditions. CONCLUSIONS: Partial knowledge should be least problematic with independent true/false items. The effect on test reliability of blind guessing under number-right conditions is generally greater than that due to the over-cautiousness of some students when there is negative marking.

Communication↗

PubMed1992

Public opinion about AIDS policies. The role of misinformation and attitudes toward homosexuals.

In an effort to better understand the cognitive and attitudinal factors underlying public opinion on AIDS-related issues, this article proposes and empirically tests a model of the relationships between (1) knowledge of HIV transmission, specifically the misinformation that AIDS can be transmitted easily through casual contact with HIV-infected persons; (2) attitudes toward homosexuals, the most prominent of the social groups presently affected by the AIDS crisis; and (3) support for restrictive public policies aimed at HIV-infected persons. Data from two nationally representative surveys conducted in December of 1985 (N = 2,308) and in July of 1987 (N = 2,095) provide evidence that misinformation about AIDS transmission and negative attitudes toward homosexuals are strong predictors of support for stringent restrictions of persons with AIDS. The findings also suggest that several background factors, in particular, education and political liberalism, may also play decisive roles in influencing levels of support for restricting those infected with the AIDS virus.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

PubMed2005

Memory for fact, fiction, and misinformation: the Iraq War 2003.

Media coverage of the 2003 Iraq War frequently contained corrections and retractions of earlier information. For example, claims that Iraqi forces executed coalition prisoners of war after they surrendered were retracted the day after the claims were made. Similarly, tentative initial reports about the discovery of weapons of mass destruction were all later disconfirmed. We investigated the effects of these retractions and disconfirmations on people's memory for and beliefs about war-related events in two coalition countries (Australia and the United States) and one country that opposed the war (Germany). Participants were queried about (a) true events, (b) events initially presented as fact but subsequently retracted, and (c) fictional events. Participants in the United States did not show sensitivity to the correction of misinformation, whereas participants in Australia and Germany discounted corrected misinformation. Our results are consistent with previous findings in that the differences between samples reflect greater suspicion about the motives underlying the war among people in Australia and Germany than among people in the United States.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1990

Counteracting nutritional misinformation: a curricular proposal.

Health authorities are concerned about community exposure to nutritional misinformation. Adequate education of health professionals in nutritional matters has been proposed as an important strategy for counteracting such misinformation. This paper provides an example of how the undergraduate chiropractic curriculum may be used to facilitate the development of a framework which enables discrimination between nutritional sense and nonsense. It also discusses how student awareness of discrepancies between personal belief, nutritional science and clinical practice reality may be enhanced.

Ascorbic Acid↗

PubMed1998

How misinformation alters memories.

Over the past quarter of a century, hundreds of studies have demonstrated that misleading postevent information affects people's memories. Researchers have used several methods to try to understand this phenomenon and have also put forward different theories to account for the effect. Brainerd and Reyna's (1998, this issue) conjoint misinformation method and their fuzzy-trace theory are welcomed additions on both these fronts. We describe how their contribution fits with the other methods and theories which have been used to understand how misleading postevent information affects people's memory.

Adult↗

PubMed1986

Rumor, misinformation and oral contraceptive use in Egypt.

Rumor and misinformation about oral contraceptives continue to prevail in much of Egypt. This study tests the hypothesis that rumor involvement can have a negative and independent impact on pill usage by focusing on a common misbelief that the pill causes 'weakness'. The data comes from a 1981-1982 national self-weighted sample survey of 3283 currently married men and women dealing with family planning and mass media behaviors. The analyses confirm that rumor involvement decreases the probability of current or future pill use by previous users and by those who have never used it. Correct knowledge about the pill is shown to enhance pill usage as do other determinants such as social support for birth control and the desire for no more children. The importance of providing strong contraceptive education programs giving deeper consideration to contraceptive and related health beliefs in delivering fertility regulation services is highlighted.

Adult↗

PubMed1991

Misinformation about medications in rural Ghana.

Misuse of medications is a serious problem in developing countries where drug sales are not regulated. This study assessed drug knowledge and use in a rural Ghanaian town. We surveyed health care workers and a community population sample regarding knowledge and use of available drugs. Although drugs were used by a large percentage of the population, only a small percentage correctly described their recommended use. Doctors and medical assistants were knowledgeable in the correct use of drugs, while chemists were poorly informed. However, the majority of the non-health care worker (NHCW) population bought drugs from chemists without a prescription. We conclude that in this rural setting, chemists contributed to drug misuse by providing misinformation about drugs and selling drugs according to popular demand. Educational programs for chemists and the population regarding drug use and regulation of drug sales by chemists will be critical to drug reform in Ghana.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Demystifying bioterrorism: misinformation and misperceptions.

The true threat of bioterrorism remains mysterious and elusive to the common citizen. It principally has become the dominion of a few "experts", many of whom have limited apparent expertise, who have failed to effectively communicate the risks and realities to society, and have instead created an air of uncertainty surrounding the topic. Unlike the great classic deceptions of modern life (e.g., "the check is in the mail"), the misinformation and misperceptions associated with bioterrorism can be dangerous and are not merely humorous. Indeed, it is possible to grasp the facts as well as fallacies associated with bioterrorism, and, as a result, demystify this nightmare scenario and prepare for the "unthinkable".

Bioterrorism↗

PubMed2001

Children's eyewitness reports after exposure to misinformation from parents.

This study examined how misleading suggestions from parents influenced children's eyewitness reports. Children (3 to 8 years old) participated in science demonstrations, listened to their parents read a story that described experienced and nonexperienced events, and subsequently discussed the science experience in two follow-up interviews. Many children described fictitious events in response to open-ended prompts, and there were no age differences in suggestibility during this phase of the interview. Accuracy declined markedly in response to direct questions, especially for the younger children. Although the older children retracted many of their false reports after receiving source-monitoring instructions, the younger children did not. Path analyses indicated that acquiescence, free recall, and source monitoring all contribute to mediating patterns of suggestibility across age. Results indicate that judgments about the accuracy of children's testimony must consider the possibility of exposure to misinformation prior to formal interviews.

Child↗

PubMed2004

When a lie becomes the truth: the effects of self-generated misinformation on eyewitness memory.

This research investigated whether generating misinformation impairs memory for actual information. After watching a videotaped robbery, some witnesses were interviewed about it, but others did not rehearse the event details. One week later, the witnesses tried to remember the robber's appearance. In Experiment 1, those who fabricated a description of the robber during the interview and those who did not rehearse remembered fewer correct details than did truthful witnesses or those who fabricated about another person. Witnesses who fabricated about the robber also reported more incorrect details than did truthful or non-interviewed witnesses. In Experiment 2, witnesses who fabricated about the robber performed as poorly on the memory test as did witnesses who answered interview questions using false information prepared for them. In both experiments deceptive witnesses sometimes reported invented details on the memory test, suggesting that they may have come to believe some fabrications.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2006

Social suggestibility to central and peripheral misinformation.

This study used a laboratory-based paradigm to investigate social influences on participants' susceptibility to misleading suggestions. Participants viewed a video clip of an action sequence with one or more peers, and then were required to discuss the event with the co-witness or with the group of co-witnesses. During the discussion a confederate, posing as a peer, presented misinformation about central and peripheral features of the co-witnessed event. Results indicated that participants were more susceptible to misleading suggestions during one-on-one discussions than during group discussions. In addition, participants were susceptible to misleading suggestions about central features of the witnessed event, although to a lesser extent than they were susceptible to misleading suggestions about peripheral features.

Communication↗