Determinants of Fear of Demographic Changes and the Tendency to Spread Viral News Among Millennials

Abstract

Tendency of spreading viral news had become quite a problem in itself, as the information mostly was not authorized, and could trigger the fear of structural changes in the society. This study aimed to investigate whether political preference, religiosity, and group chat involvements affected the tendency to spread viral news, and ultimately led to fear of demographic changes. Quantitatively, 170 youths participated in this study and were analyzed in SEM-PLS. The study found that millennials' political preference affected their news dissemination; involvement in group chats also increased their news channeling. Interestingly, religious millennials feared the shift in demographics. Aside from that acceptance, other hypotheses were rejected. This contributed to the discussion of communication among millennials.

The Role of Knowledge, Emotion, and Intention in Influencing Students’ Behaviors During COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Recent studies have shown that fake and real news spread differently on social media, forming propagation patterns that could be harnessed (Monti et al, 2019). A study found that the millennials' political preference affects their news dissemination; involvement in group chats also increases their news channeling (Abdullah & Syariati, 2020). In Simon et al (2015), social media provides access and timely information during emergency situations.…”