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User-Driven Fact-Checking Behavior, Motivational Barriers and Expertise Asymmetry in Health Communication: A
Elena Artemenko1, Olessia Koltsova1, Maksim Terpilovskii1
1Social & Cognitive Informatics Lab., HSE University, Saint-Petersburg, Russia.
Journal of Health Communication
|June 26, 2026
Summary
Fact-checking health information improves accuracy, but its effectiveness depends on user expertise. Financial incentives did not boost verification efforts, highlighting the need for skill training over motivation alone to combat misinformation.
Area of Science:
- Information Science
- Psychology
- Communication Studies
Background:
- Health misinformation poses a significant threat to public well-being.
- Current research often overlooks user-driven fact-checking and its impact on truthful statements.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate fact-checking as a naturalistic user behavior.
- To identify predictors and consequences of user-driven verification for accuracy.
- To test the impact of motivational incentives on fact-checking behavior and accuracy.
Main Methods:
- A large-scale online experiment with 1,843 participants evaluating health statements.
- Indirect behavioral indicators captured external verification efforts.
- Bayesian structural equation modeling analyzed the relationship between fact-checking, expertise, and accuracy.
Main Results:
- Increased fact-checking effort correlated with higher accuracy.
- Media professionals benefited more from verification than laypeople; medical professionals showed inconsistent results.
- Financial incentives did not enhance fact-checking effort or accuracy.
Conclusions:
- Domain expertise is not a universal safeguard against misinformation; transferable verification skills are crucial.
- Motivational incentives are ineffective in increasing online verification engagement.
- Resilience to misinformation relies on the interplay of user verification practices and expertise; interventions should combine skill training with situational cues.
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