Author Date

2023-05-31

Degree Name

Department

Neuroscience

College

Life Sciences

Defense Date

2023-05-31

Publication Date

2023-06-08

First Faculty Advisor

C. Brock Kirwan

First Faculty Reader

Stefania Ashby

Honors Coordinator

Rebekka Matheson

Keywords

fMRI, Semantic Memory, Decision-Making, Misinformation, COVID-19 Vaccines

Abstract

With the continued use and prevalence of social media, misinformation is likewise becoming more prevalent. Information about the COVID-19 pandemic was an example of the way misinformation spreads and presents challenges to society through polarization and discord. As people made decisions regarding whether to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, misinformation may have impacted their decision making. The goal of this study was to understand how misinformation and corrections to misinformation differentially activate the brain, in contrast to how correct information activates the brain, and how misinformation impacts decision making.