Exploring the Design of Technology-Mediated Nudges for Online Misinformation

Abstract

Interest in technological solutions for combating online misinformation has rapidly grown over the last decade, yet the majority of proposed tools do not consider behavioral theories in their design, nor have they addressed the ways in which individuals could potentially interact with these tools, while omitting the plausible ways in which variations in the design of the interventions may affect end-users’ decision-making and behavioral responses. In this paper, we explore the potential of nudging to inform the design of technological tools that aim to mitigate online misinformation through behavior change. We report on a design workshop where 29 participants were asked to conceive technology-mediated nudges supporting individuals’ decision-making in the production, dissemination or consumption of misinformative content. In producing novel solutions, participants used the “Nudge Deck,” a design support tool that makes nudge theory, and particularly a framework of 23 interaction design mechanisms for nudging, accessible during time-constrained design meetings. We present the outputs of the session and discuss them in light of prior literature with respect to ethics and potential effectiveness.

Keywords:

• Nudging
• online misinformation
• behavior change
• cognitive biases

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

The study was partially funded by the Co-Inform project (770302), under the Horizon 2020 call “H2020-SC6-COCREATION-2016-2017 (CO-CREATION FOR GROWTH AND INCLUSION)” of the European Commission, the proposal entitled: “Co-Creating Misinformation-Resilient Societies”. More information on Co-Inform can be found at: https://coinform.eu/.

Notes on contributors

Loukas Konstantinou

Loukas Konstantinou holds a bachelor’s degree in Communication and Internet Studies from the Cyprus University of Technology. He is a PhD student and research assistant at the Persuasive Tech Lab of the mentioned department. His research interests focus on designing, prototyping and evaluating technology-mediated behavioral interventions.

Dionysis Panos

Dionysis Panos is at the Department of Communication and Internet Studies of Cyprus University of Technology. His recent research work focuses mainly on Social Media and Web communication, Misinformation and ’Memory Construction’, Digital Archiving and Algorithmic Memory, and Digital Oral History.

Evangelos Karapanos

Evangelos Karapanos is in the Department of Communication and Internet Studies of the Cyprus University of Technology, where he leads the Persuasive Technologies Lab. He has a keen interest in longitudinal field trials of interactive technology, with an emphasis on behavior change technologies.