Perceptions and Behavioral Responses to True and False News: A Survey Study

Abstract

In the digital information age, the rapid advancement of internet communication technologies and the popularization of intelligent tools have expedited the dissemination of information, while also fostering a breeding ground for the spread of false news. Characterized by rapid transmission, strong concealment and wide-ranging influence, false news not only distorts the public’s accurate cognition of events, but also erodes the credibility of information dissemination channels and even poses potential threats to social order and stability. Meanwhile, the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) technology has emerged as a double-edged sword in the field of information communication: on one hand, it offers innovative tools and methods for information verification and false news identification, empowering both the public and professional institutions to screen information more efficiently; on the other hand, it has spawned new forms of false information such as deep fake content, which are more realistic and deceptive, bringing unprecedented challenges to the governance of true and false news.

Against this backdrop, the public’s cognition level and response behaviors toward true and false news have become core research topics for understanding the current state of information dissemination and optimizing false news governance strategies. To explore the public’s practical attitudes, behavioral tendencies and decision-making logic when facing true and false news, as well as their cognition of AI-related risks and human-machine collaboration models in the news field, this survey was conducted. By collecting and analyzing questionnaire data from respondents with different age and professional backgrounds, the report sorts out the public’s information verification habits, risk perception of AI in the news industry and cognitive characteristics of human-machine collaboration in information identification. It further summarizes the existing problems in the public’s information judgment and response, and puts forward targeted thinking and suggestions for subsequent fake news prevention and control. This research is expected to provide a micro perspective and basic empirical reference for improving the public’s social media literacy, advancing technical prevention and control means, and constructing a scientific, efficient and multi-dimensional false news governance system.