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posted by janrinok on Sunday September 04 2022, @07:49PM   Printer-friendly
from the I'm-confident-you'll-like-this-SN-story dept.

Sharing on Social Media Makes Us Overconfident in Our Knowledge:

Sharing news articles with friends and followers on social media can prompt people to think they know more about the articles' topics than they actually do, according to a new study from researchers at The University of Texas at Austin.

Social media sharers believe that they are knowledgeable about the content they share, even if they have not read it or have only glanced at a headline. Sharing can create this rise in confidence because by putting information online, sharers publicly commit to an expert identity. Doing so shapes their sense of self, helping them to feel just as knowledgeable as their post makes them seem.

This is especially true when sharing with close friends, according to a new paper from Susan M. Broniarczyk, professor of marketing, and Adrian Ward, assistant professor of marketing, at UT's McCombs School of Business.

[...] The research also suggests there's merit to social media companies that have piloted ways to encourage people to read articles before sharing.

"If people feel more knowledgeable on a topic, they also feel they maybe don't need to read or learn additional information on that topic," Broniarczyk said. "This miscalibrated sense of knowledge can be hard to correct."

For more details about this research, read the McCombs Big Ideas feature story and watch the video explaining Broniarczyk and Ward's work.

Journal Reference:
Adrian F. Ward, Jianqing (Frank) Zheng, Susan M. Broniarczyk, I share, therefore I know? Sharing online content - even without reading it - inflates subjective knowledge, J Con Psych, 2022. DOI: 10.1002/jcpy.1321


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  • (Score: 4, Insightful) by MostCynical on Sunday September 04 2022, @09:16PM (1 child)

    by MostCynical (2589) on Sunday September 04 2022, @09:16PM (#1270248) Journal

    Musk
    Trump
    many others..

    ..explains so much.

    especially true when sharing with close friends

    ....for certain people/personality types, this bit seems to be less important.

    --
    "I guess once you start doubting, there's no end to it." -Batou, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
    • (Score: 5, Insightful) by stretch611 on Monday September 05 2022, @12:13AM

      by stretch611 (6199) on Monday September 05 2022, @12:13AM (#1270274)

      Look at your examples when talking about close friends

      I doubt either Trump or Musk have any friends that are closer than the Stans [urbandictionary.com] that follow them.

      --
      Now with 5 covid vaccine shots/boosters altering my DNA :P
  • (Score: 2) by RedGreen on Sunday September 04 2022, @09:36PM

    by RedGreen (888) on Sunday September 04 2022, @09:36PM (#1270249)

    I tell you, who would ever have thought people are full of shit thinking they are so knowledgeable. Never experienced that more than few dozens of times a day for my entire life...

    --
    "I modded down, down, down, and the flames went higher." -- Sven Olsen
  • (Score: 4, Insightful) by dwilson98052 on Sunday September 04 2022, @09:57PM (2 children)

    by dwilson98052 (17613) on Sunday September 04 2022, @09:57PM (#1270254)

    ...most of those platforms punish those who call stupid people stupid for posting stupid shit.

    • (Score: 0, Spam) by Monotaro on Monday September 05 2022, @12:53AM (1 child)

      by Monotaro (18236) on Monday September 05 2022, @12:53AM (#1270283)

      This one certainly does.

      aristarchus

      • (Score: -1, Spam) by Altoarchus on Monday September 05 2022, @09:08AM

        by Altoarchus (18240) on Monday September 05 2022, @09:08AM (#1270309)

        Irony meter is busted again, from over-use. Admins! Please fix.

  • (Score: 4, Informative) by NotSanguine on Sunday September 04 2022, @11:05PM (3 children)

    The Dunning-Kruger Effect [wikipedia.org].

    As discussed here [youtube.com] with a relevant example provided.

    --
    No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
    • (Score: 4, Funny) by srobert on Monday September 05 2022, @02:07PM (2 children)

      by srobert (4803) on Monday September 05 2022, @02:07PM (#1270324)

      Tell us, do you now feel confident about your knowledge of the Dunning-Kruger effect?

      • (Score: 3, Funny) by NotSanguine on Monday September 05 2022, @08:28PM

        What kind of stupid question is that?

        I watched a video about it with Kruger himself in it.

        So obviously I now know more than he does. Duh!

        --
        No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
      • (Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Tuesday September 06 2022, @03:47AM

        On a related, but serious note, this is an interesting book [wikipedia.org].

        If you want more information (from the author himself) check this [c-span.org] out.

        As a bonus, the second link has the best definition of "fake news" that I've ever heard.

        Actually, just go to the second link, then you could have written the book yourself! ;)

        --
        No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
  • (Score: 3, Touché) by stretch611 on Monday September 05 2022, @12:08AM (2 children)

    by stretch611 (6199) on Monday September 05 2022, @12:08AM (#1270272)

    We NEVER see any of that here on SN.

    --
    Now with 5 covid vaccine shots/boosters altering my DNA :P
    • (Score: -1, Spam) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 05 2022, @12:55AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 05 2022, @12:55AM (#1270284)

      Nope, no sirree, never gonna censor, not gonna give you up!

    • (Score: 4, Insightful) by Opportunist on Monday September 05 2022, @05:47AM

      by Opportunist (5545) on Monday September 05 2022, @05:47AM (#1270304)

      The chances are at least lower. On here, if you post completely inane bullshit, I can tell you it's completely inane bullshit without some mod clutching his pearls and telling me off for it.

  • (Score: 0, Redundant) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 05 2022, @12:21AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 05 2022, @12:21AM (#1270276)

    Just because they agree with the official story, and since so many others also agree, it must be true

  • (Score: 4, Funny) by bzipitidoo on Monday September 05 2022, @12:59AM

    by bzipitidoo (4388) Subscriber Badge on Monday September 05 2022, @12:59AM (#1270285) Journal

    I couldn't say as much if I had to read the article first! Cost me too much time!

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