This research explores the resilience of highly educated individuals in Greece to mis- and disinformation, focusing on their news engagement and information verification practices. Despite high levels of awareness and concern about disinformation, the study found that participants exhibited varying levels of news consumption, with only about 57% visiting news websites daily, and a significant portion relying on social media for exposure to false information. The research highlights the gap between participants’ interest in news and their actual engagement with reliable news sources. The results suggest that individuals with higher education may not be immune to disinformation, often underestimating their vulnerability. Notably, the frequency of news consumption was negatively correlated with the use of rigorous fact-checking methods. Moreover, psychological and social factors, such as the desire for social validation and the importance of content, strongly influenced sharing behavior. The study recommends that media literacy campaigns (MLCs) and overall media literacy education (MLE) for this group should address these cognitive biases and social dynamics, emphasizing critical thinking, the use of multiple sources, and the importance of external fact-checking tools.
Katsaounidou et al. (Fri,) studied this question.