The use of scientific evidence by young in social media interactions to overcome health disinformation in their daily lives, Social Media Analytics on Reddit (Preprint)

BACKGROUND Social media can facilitate fast access to health information. However, research has found that online social media conversations can promote preventive or risky behaviour regarding young people's health. One of the current concerns is how health disinformation can affect vulnerable youth who interact with false or non-accurate information that negatively impacts their health self-management. OBJECTIVE This research aims to identify the types of social media interactions that are most effective in promoting youth engagement with information based on scientific evidence. The study also seeks to understand how these interactions contribute to mitigating health disinformation, a pressing issue in the digital age. METHODS The research method used is social media analytics. A dataset of 1714 messages from Reddit was analysed to identify what type of interactions promote overcoming health disinformation among youth through a detailed analysis of interactions under communicative content analysis. RESULTS The results indicate that young people are more engaged with interactions based on scientific evidence, contributing to overcoming health disinformation spread even in their own families, especially on vaccine hoaxes related to COVID-19. In the sample selected and analysed, there were more positive reactions to scientific evidence that supports the message of the young people who opened the conversation (18%) than negative ones (2%). CONCLUSIONS Young individuals are not just consumers of information but are actively utilising scientific evidence in their day-to-day social media interactions, serving as a linchpin for promoting evidence-based practices in their daily lives. It is of utmost importance for public health authorities to recognize that these interactions, shared through social media, are crucial. They can promote the debunking of hoaxes, encourage engagement with information based on scientific evidence, and help foster healthy behaviour among at-risk youth. CLINICALTRIAL None