“Vishvaas Mat Karo!”: A Media Literacy Field Experiment in North Indian Schools

Adolescence is a time when youth start engaging more with their own health—and seeking information about their bodies and health choices online. While this is true of adolescents the world over, it can present an extra challenge in contexts of low literacy and limited internet experience. Partnering with local authorities, researchers will evaluate if inoculating against misinformation through a long-term grassroots training program will be effective in combating health misinformation among secondary school students in India. In randomly selected schools, students will participate in two-hour sessions held every month for half a school year, in which they will learn about the problem of health misinformation in India and its consequences, how and why misinformation spreads, and strategies to inoculate against it. The effectiveness of these sessions will be measured by comparing between students in schools with and without these sessions, including students’ self-reported attitudes and identification of misinformation, as well as behavioral outcomes such as whether they flag dubious content online, comply with public health measures, and the quality of their news diet.

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LOCATION

North India

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