new study claims that young people are more likely to believe COVID-19 misinformation. As public officials warn about the increasing coronavirus cases among young people, a group of researchers suggests that Americans below 25 years old have a higher chance of believing virus-related false information.  

New Study Shows Young People are More Likely to Believe Misinformation Regarding COVID-19's Origin and Severity
(Photo : Photo by Amir Levy/Getty Images)
JERUSALEM, ISRAEL - SEPTEMBER 20: A man smiles as he is detained by police after driving fast toward protesters during a demonstration against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu near a police road stop during a nation lockdown on September 20, 2020 in Jerusalem, Israel. As the country grapples with a surge in Covid-19 cases it has imposed a three-week lockdown that coincides with Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year; and Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.

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This includes the disease's severity and origin. The new research conducted a survey involving 21,196 people from all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The scientists were able to determine a clear generational division. 

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The participants who are 18 to 25 years old had an 18% probability of believing a false coronavirus claim. On the other hand, those above 65 years old had a 9% chance of believing COVID-19 misinformation. 

The new study was conducted by researchers from Rutgers University, Harvard University, Northwestern University, and Northeastern University.  

The new research contradicts the previous study about older people spreading false news

The new research contradicts a previous study, which stated that older people were more likely to share fake news articles on social media. The paper published in the journal Science Advances explained that fake news had renewed concerns about the effects and prevalence of misinformation in political campaigns. 

New Study Shows Young People are More Likely to Believe Misinformation Regarding COVID-19's Origin and Severity
(Photo : Photo by Pablo Blazquez Dominguez/Getty Images)
MADRID, SPAIN - SEPTEMBER 20: Protesters wearing protective masks walk the streets during a demonstration, in the Usera neighborhood, against the measures imposed by the regional government on areas with the most Covid-19 cases on September 20, 2020 in Madrid, Spain. Spain is the midst of a second wave of Covid-19, reporting more than 122,000 new cases in the last two weeks. More than a third are in the Madrid region.

It focused on examining the individual-level characteristics linked with sharing false articles during the U.S. 2016 presidential campaign. The researchers uniquely link an original survey with the respondents' sharing activities in their Facebook profile data. 

The discovered that people above 65 years old were seven times more likely to share false articles than 30 to 44 years old. The fake information mostly came from websites that spread misinformation back in 2016.  

On the other hand, the latest study asked the participants to gauge their acceptance of 11 fake claims. These include that COVID-19 came from people who ate bats, that 60 years old people or older are the only ones who could be infected, and that taking antibiotics protects against the viral disease.   

For more news updates about studies related to the novel coronavirus, always keep your tabs open here at TechTimes. 

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Written by: Giuliano de Leon.

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