{
  "abstract": "Social media use has the potential to promote misperceptions, but evidence is mixed. Despite social media characteristics that include homophilous social networks, algorithms that can reinforce biases, and social bots that promote falsehoods, there is no evidence of a strong association between social media use and misperceptions. This project offers the strongest empirical test of this relation to date, providing additional evidence of the minimal effects of social media use on misperceptions. Data come from two independent large-N panel studies, each paired with online tracking data, one focused on the 2020 election and the other on the COVID-19 pandemic. Within-between regression models show that social media use was not associated with a statistically significant decline in Americans’ ability to discriminate between true and false claims on any of the four platforms examined—Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "School of Communication, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, United States of America",
    "School of Communication, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, United States of America",
    "Merrimack College, North Andover, Massachusetts, United States of America",
    "Department of Psychology, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, United States of America"
  ],
  "article_type": "Research Article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 8,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Qin Li"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Robert M. Bond"
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    {
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        2
      ],
      "name": "Erik Nisbet"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Graham Dixon"
    },
    {
      "name": "Shelly Hovick"
    },
    {
      "name": "Kilhoe Na"
    },
    {
      "name": "Duane Wegener"
    },
    {
      "name": "R. Kelly Garrett"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/58yjph90vv56r.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1371/journal.pone.0354486",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "58yjph90vv56r",
  "issns": [
    "1932-6203"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0354486",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "journal",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "3312|Misinformation and Its Impacts"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Computer and information sciences/Network analysis/Social networks/Social media"
    ],
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      "plos",
      "/Computer and information sciences/Network analysis/Social networks/Social media/Facebook"
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      "plos",
      "/Computer and information sciences/Network analysis/Social networks/Social media/Twitter"
    ],
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      "plos",
      "/Medicine and health sciences/Diagnostic medicine/Virus testing"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Medicine and health sciences/Epidemiology/Pandemics"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Medicine and health sciences/Medical conditions/Infectious diseases/Viral diseases/COVID 19"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Social sciences/Political science/Elections"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Social sciences/Sociology/Communications/Social communication/Social media"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Social sciences/Sociology/Communications/Social communication/Social media/Facebook"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Social sciences/Sociology/Communications/Social communication/Social media/Twitter"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Social sciences/Sociology/Social networks/Social media"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Social sciences/Sociology/Social networks/Social media/Facebook"
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    [
      "plos",
      "/Social sciences/Sociology/Social networks/Social media/Twitter"
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    [
      "plos",
      "/Social sciences/Sociology/Social research"
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  "openalex": "W7214939332",
  "pdf_url": "https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0354486&type=printable",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-09-30",
  "publisher": "Public Library of Science",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/58yjph90vv56r.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:17:37Z",
      "native_id": "10.1371/journal.pone.0354486",
      "source": "plos",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0354486"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "plos:epidemiology",
      "subfield": "epidemiology-public-health"
    },
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "plos:infectious diseases",
      "subfield": "infectious-disease"
    }
  ],
  "title": "The limited effects of social media use on misperceptions Social media’s limited role in misperceptions",
  "title_text": "The limited effects of social media use on misperceptions Social media’s limited role in misperceptions",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:17:37Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/58yjph90vv56r",
  "venue": "PLOS One",
  "versions": []
}