Saint Louis University

In regards to uncorrected misinformation, participants react differently depending on their emotional state. Anger was found to transcend any influence of partisanship and resulted in participants having a higher susceptibility of believing misinformation that aligned with their political party. Anxiety actually weakens the influence of partisanship and instead increases the likelihood of participants believing a false claim from the opposing political party.

Results of Anxiety and Anger on Political Misinformation Study

Weeks, B. E. (2015). Emotions, Partisanship, and Misperceptions: How Anger and Anxiety Moderate the Effect of Partisan Bias on Susceptibility to Political Misinformation. Journal of Communication, 65(4), 699–719. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcom.12164

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