Distress and rumor exposure on social media during a campus lockdown

Significance During active shooter events when danger is imminent and official information is disseminated inconsistently, ambiguity is high. In these situations, individuals may seek information from unofficial channels (e.g., social media), thereby exposing themselves to unverified information and rumors. In a study of students caught in a university-wide lockdown, we found that those who relied on social media for updates reported increased exposure to conflicting information. Moreover, those who trusted what they read reported greater distress. Then, using a big-data analysis of Twitter data spanning ∼5 hours surrounding the event, we demonstrated that rumor transmission tracks with community-level negative emotion during gaps in official communication. Officials should monitor social media channels to mitigate the negative impact of rumors during collective traumas.