The Psychology of Misinformation

Catalog description

The course covers basic concepts and recent findings on the psychology of misinformation. In this class, we will ask questions such as: Why do people fall for fake news? What leads people to share misinformation online? What can be done to undermine the spread and influence of misinformation? The course will draw on concepts from across psychology, including social, cognitive, developmental, neuroscience, and clinical. Furthermore, although our focus will be on the underlying psychological processes, the course materials will intersect with other disciplines, including journalism, communication, computer science, political science, and others.