From Conspiracy Theories to Misinformation - Distorted information from the user's perspective (ConSeg)

Abstract

The project examines who is confronted with distorted information, such as conspiracy theories and misinformation, and who believes in this information, how such belief can be explained, how it relates to media usage, and what consequences it has for information seeking. To answer these questions, a standardised survey of a representative sample in Germany is conducted. The analyses include a segment analysis of people who believe in various conspiracy theories and factors that explain the belief in distorted information.