Cognitive authorities of COVID-19 information: educational differences and outcomes of trust in health experts and social media influencers in Finland
Introduction. This study investigates people’s trust in institutional healthcare experts and social media influencers as sources of COVID-19 information. Using the notion of ‘cognitive authority’, this study examines trusted information sources during the pandemic, how the education level explains t...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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University of Borås
2024-06-01
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| Series: | Information Research: An International Electronic Journal |
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| Online Access: | https://informationr.net/infres/article/view/713 |
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| author | Sanna Malinen Aki Koivula |
| author_facet | Sanna Malinen Aki Koivula |
| author_sort | Sanna Malinen |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Introduction. This study investigates people’s trust in institutional healthcare experts and social media influencers as sources of COVID-19 information. Using the notion of ‘cognitive authority’, this study examines trusted information sources during the pandemic, how the education level explains this trust, and how trusted COVID-19 information sources are associated with people’s attitudes towards vaccines.
Method. Data were collected through eight rounds of nationally representative repeated cross-sectional surveys in 2021. The data set included 8507 respondents from Finland.
Analysis. A descriptive analysis was conducted to understand how trust evolved throughout the pandemic. Then, linear probability models were employed to analyse the factors shaping trust and determining vaccine intention. Finally, the analysis examined the indirect effects of trust in the association between education and vaccine uptake.
Results. Education explains trust in institutional experts or social media influencers: Those with lower education are more likely to trust social media influencers, and their trust in them is connected to negative attitudes towards vaccines.
Conclusion. The findings confirm that people rely on institutional experts and healthcare professionals during a health crisis. Our primary concern is the 5% who trust social media influencers and distrust health experts. The alternative information and low trust in institutions presented by social media influencers can disproportionately affect citizens with a lower level of education. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-a55188117c114c7cabc6242555fa81f9 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1368-1613 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-06-01 |
| publisher | University of Borås |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Information Research: An International Electronic Journal |
| spelling | doaj-art-a55188117c114c7cabc6242555fa81f92025-02-03T10:10:34ZengUniversity of BoråsInformation Research: An International Electronic Journal1368-16132024-06-01292719110.47989/ir292713710Cognitive authorities of COVID-19 information: educational differences and outcomes of trust in health experts and social media influencers in FinlandSanna Malinen0Aki Koivula1University of TurkuUniversity of TurkuIntroduction. This study investigates people’s trust in institutional healthcare experts and social media influencers as sources of COVID-19 information. Using the notion of ‘cognitive authority’, this study examines trusted information sources during the pandemic, how the education level explains this trust, and how trusted COVID-19 information sources are associated with people’s attitudes towards vaccines. Method. Data were collected through eight rounds of nationally representative repeated cross-sectional surveys in 2021. The data set included 8507 respondents from Finland. Analysis. A descriptive analysis was conducted to understand how trust evolved throughout the pandemic. Then, linear probability models were employed to analyse the factors shaping trust and determining vaccine intention. Finally, the analysis examined the indirect effects of trust in the association between education and vaccine uptake. Results. Education explains trust in institutional experts or social media influencers: Those with lower education are more likely to trust social media influencers, and their trust in them is connected to negative attitudes towards vaccines. Conclusion. The findings confirm that people rely on institutional experts and healthcare professionals during a health crisis. Our primary concern is the 5% who trust social media influencers and distrust health experts. The alternative information and low trust in institutions presented by social media influencers can disproportionately affect citizens with a lower level of education.https://informationr.net/infres/article/view/713social mediahealth information seekingcovid-19cognitive authoritytrustsocial media influencers |
| spellingShingle | Sanna Malinen Aki Koivula Cognitive authorities of COVID-19 information: educational differences and outcomes of trust in health experts and social media influencers in Finland Information Research: An International Electronic Journal social media health information seeking covid-19 cognitive authority trust social media influencers |
| title | Cognitive authorities of COVID-19 information: educational differences and outcomes of trust in health experts and social media influencers in Finland |
| title_full | Cognitive authorities of COVID-19 information: educational differences and outcomes of trust in health experts and social media influencers in Finland |
| title_fullStr | Cognitive authorities of COVID-19 information: educational differences and outcomes of trust in health experts and social media influencers in Finland |
| title_full_unstemmed | Cognitive authorities of COVID-19 information: educational differences and outcomes of trust in health experts and social media influencers in Finland |
| title_short | Cognitive authorities of COVID-19 information: educational differences and outcomes of trust in health experts and social media influencers in Finland |
| title_sort | cognitive authorities of covid 19 information educational differences and outcomes of trust in health experts and social media influencers in finland |
| topic | social media health information seeking covid-19 cognitive authority trust social media influencers |
| url | https://informationr.net/infres/article/view/713 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT sannamalinen cognitiveauthoritiesofcovid19informationeducationaldifferencesandoutcomesoftrustinhealthexpertsandsocialmediainfluencersinfinland AT akikoivula cognitiveauthoritiesofcovid19informationeducationaldifferencesandoutcomesoftrustinhealthexpertsandsocialmediainfluencersinfinland |