Finding 1
Academic definitions of conspiracy, misinformation and disinformation are not understood in the same way by the public.
Summary:
Young people, school staff and parents have a much looser understanding of conspiracy theories, misinformation and disinformation than the academic definitions.
There was often confusion about the differences between conspiracy theory, disinformation and misinformation.
There was a notable crossover between conspiracies, ‘true crime’, news articles about disappearances, and celebrity content that also use simple narrative lines.
From the beginning, this project has always sought to be grounded in the reality of schools, in the service of school staff and the young people they work with. Although the Commission began with a review of the academic literature, once we commenced our primary research it became clear that young people, school staff and parents had a much looser understanding of conspiracy theories, misinformation and disinformation than the academic definitions. While the definitions should not bend to fit different understandings (or crucially a lack of understanding), it was clear that the average lay person – whether they are a parent, school a member of staff or a young person – is not aware of the differences between conspiracy theories, disinformation and misinformation. This does not mean they are unconcerned or unwilling to tackle them, but that conversations in this space lack nuance or shared understandings.
Methodologically this early finding meant an expansion in the Commission’s remit to explicitly include the role of disinformation and misinformation in schools, as well as conspiracy theories.
“A conspiracy theory may be a theory made up by someone based on information from others or the news.”
“A conspiracy theory are things are made up that could be the truth.”
“A conspiracy theory is something that is made up but using scientific language and some evidence to make it seem real.”
Written responses to the verbal question: ‘How would you define the term conspiracy theory?’
The clearest example of this divergence between academic definitions and public understanding came from our polling, where all three groups (pupils, school staff and parents) ranked the two typical academic markers of a conspiracy theory, namely ‘accusing a person or people of wrongdoing’ and ‘blaming a small group for events’, as the least important indicators of what defines a conspiracy theory.
Methodologically this early finding meant an expansion in the Commission’s remit to explicitly include the role of disinformation and misinformation in schools, as well as conspiracy theories.
Graph 1: Which of the following do you think makes something a “conspiracy theory”? Select any which apply.
There was far more agreement across the three groups on what makes a conspiracy theory than there was with the academic literature. Pupils were most likely to say something was a conspiracy theory if it ‘claims people are being lied to’ (43%), behind the notion that it ‘calls into doubt mainstream sources of information’ (39%). Parents and school staff both prioritised ‘calls into doubt mainstream sources of information’ as the most significant factor in identifying a conspiracy theory’ (49%). There was also strong support across groups for ‘if it attempts to divide people’ being an indicator for conspiracy theories, although this had less support amongst pupils (32%) than parents (36%) and school staff (39%), perhaps demonstrating a higher level of acceptance of division amongst young people.
In some of our conversations, participants were unclear or confused about the differences between the terms, conspiracy theory, disinformation and misinformation:
A conspiracy theory is a story that isn’t confirmed to be true.
Written definition provided by pupil in London focus group
Definitional slippages also manifest throughout the research in the examples participants gave. Notably, school staff had clear concerns about issues that did not totally align with the academic definition of conspiracy theory. Andrew Tate was the clearest illustration of this:1
I would say like all the Andrew Tate stuff...like how they see him, how he's a bit of a victim and then just the beliefs that he's had. I can see how that really affects young men...
Teacher, London Focus Group
We also found that there was often a crossover between conspiracies, ‘true crime’, news articles about disappearances (such as that of Jay Slater, who was reported missing during the period of this fieldwork), and celebrity content.2
That guy in America who killed his wife, she was pregnant, the American murder story, the one on Netflix…
Pupil, Midlands Focus Group
This blurring between conspiracy theories, misinformation and disinformation, as well as ‘true crime’ and celebrity content, has implications for how interventions and education in this space are targeted and what people understand the scope to be.