Theory Explains Wide Variance in Misinformation Susceptibility

A Pittsburgh-based research institute, CIRCE, has published a peer-reviewed study showing that human minds have quirky information "immune systems."

PITTSBURGH, Jan. 8, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- A potentially groundbreaking study may explain why people vary so greatly in their vulnerability to fake news, conspiracy theories, and radicalization.

A paper in the American Psychological Association's Journal of Theoretical and Philosophical Psychology advances a novel scientific theory about the human mind: that it has an evolved information "immune system" that can be made to function well or poorly.

Mental Immune Systems Theory, or MIST, posits cognitive defenses that function to screen out disruptive information, though sometimes in counterproductive ways. The theory offers explanations of several striking features of human psychology, among them our susceptibility to identity-protective cognition, confirmation bias, and hyper-partisan reasoning.

The article builds on decades of research showing that minds can be inoculated against later-arriving information, just as our bodies can be inoculated against later-arriving pathogens.

According to the theory, natural selection built antibody-generating defenses for the mind, just as it did for the body, and doubts are quite literally the antibodies of the mind. And just as exposure can help our bodies develop broad-spectrum immunity to problematic germs, exposure can help our minds develop broad-spectrum immunity to certain types of problematic misinformation: conspiracy theories, say, or propaganda.

Titled "Do Minds Have Immune Systems?," the paper answers its titular question with a qualified "Very probably, yes." The paper was co-authored by Andy Norman, author of Mental Immunity, Sander van der Linden, author of Foolproof and professor of psychology at Cambridge University, and Luke Johnson, the Operations Director for CIRCE. CIRCE, founded by Norman, is a think-tank dedicated to advancing and applying the science of immunity to misinformation.¹

"We make the case that the mind likely has an immune system of its own," said van der Linden. "We also lay out a research agenda for verifying this theory empirically. Such work could have major implications for a world awash in misinformation," he added.

The theory builds on research initiated in the 1960s by William McGuire, an American social psychologist. McGuire showed that minds can be made resistant to untruths and information manipulation via strategic, pre-emptive "prebunking." For example, you can inoculate people against emotional manipulation by exposing them to harmless examples and discussing how they work.

McGuire's "inoculation theory" inspired hundreds of studies documenting the inoculability of the human mind. Van der Linden leads a new generation of inoculation theorists applying these findings to our world's mis- and disinformation problems.²

"The significance of our finding becomes clearer in historical context," said Norman. "Naming the body's immune system created a foundation for immunology, and this led to great advances in disease prevention. We think that naming the mind's immune system will lead to comparable advances – and help prevent harmful infodemics."³

"Imagine a world where we've puzzled out how the most capable minds filter out misinformation," continued Norman; "A world where preemptive exposure to troublesome ideas prevents the worst outbreaks of cognitive contagion. What if we could inoculate future generations against extremism, hate, and violence?"

"The idea of having a mental immune system ought to be empowering," added Johnson. "Developing this field of research could lead to major improvements in science education and prevent the spread of maladaptive thinking patterns."

"The paper puts the science of mental immunity on a solid conceptual and empirical foundation," said Norman. "Cognitive immunology is off and running."

Contact:
Andy Norman
412-759-8414
[email protected]

SOURCE CIRCE