A Relationship-Centered and Culturally Informed Approach to Studying Misinformation on COVID-19

Abstract

The panic and anxiety that accompanies a global pandemic is only exacerbated by the spread of misinformation. For COVID-19, in many parts of the world, such misinformation is circulating through globally popular mobile instant messaging services (MIMS) like WhatsApp and Telegram. Compared to more public social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, these services offer private, intimate, and often encrypted spaces for users to chat with family members and friends, making it difficult for the platform to moderate misinformation on them. Thus, there is an enhanced onus on users of MIMS to curb misinformation by correcting their family and friends within these spaces. Research on understanding how such relational correction occurs in different parts of the globe will need to attend to how the nature of these interpersonal relationships and the cultural dynamics that influence them shape the correction process. Thus, as people increasingly use MIMS to connect with close relations to make sense of this global crisis, studying the issue of misinformation on these services requires us to adopt a relationship-centered and culturally informed approach.

Value for Correction: Documenting Perceptions about Peer Correction of Misinformation on Social Media in the Context of COVID-19

“…While we think this is the most relevant group of people to query about their thoughts on the value of social media correction, it also suggests our sample is somewhat atypical, and less frequent users may have different opinions on the matter. Future research should continue to explore these questions using representative samples, and test whether attitudes towards correction differ across countries, cultures, or contexts (Malhotra, 2020;Vraga, Bode, & Tully, 2020). Related, because we had limited numbers of most racial categories, we were not able to examine the impact of race on attitudes about correction on social media.…”

Analysis of the Multidimensional Impacts of Corona Virus Disease-2019 (Covid-19) Pandemic

“…Relational communication through such networks, therefore, only increases in frequency. During this pandemic, as more individuals participate in such communication, the risk of misinformation being exchanged across networks like MIMS increases (Malhotra, 2020). Many employees with low pay and gigs do not afford to stay home.…”

“…A shortage of personal protection devices affects health workers around the world (WHO, 2020b). Irresponsible use of social media has encouraged the unregulated dissemination of healthrelated misinformation, which can have significant effects, such as deteriorating health conditions and increased deaths(Malhotra, 2020;Taylor & Asmundson, 2004;Waisbord, 2020).During the field survey, it was also noticed that;"This pandemic greatly impacted the routine patients who needed medical care, but due to Covid-19, the OPDs were closed, and at a later stage they were advised by the government to seek medical care through WhatsApp and other communication channels…….which put them into difficulties and stress ……..only the emergency of hospitals was open for patients other than.…”

Subjective Social Capital and Loneliness for the Elderly: The Moderator Role of Line and Facebook Use

“…On the contrary, most Line users use it for IM purposes, mostly used for one-on-one or groups with small audiences. Although less audience could be reached at once, the IM environment was more intimate, relational, and private (Gil de Zúñiga et al, 2021; Malhotra, 2020). Because of this, the different offerings of the platforms may result in different types of social media use and thus variation in the moderating effect of social capital on loneliness.…”