FCRP - Dis/Information

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Crisis of confidence in vaccination and the role of social media
(Elsevier, 2021-12) Durach, Flavia; Buturoiu, Raluca; Craiu, Dana; Cazacu, Cristina; Bârgăoanu, Alina
Introduction: The aim of this paper is to review the current situation of vaccine hesitancy, with emphasis on children with neurological disorders, and to present the role social media plays in this situation. Methods: A literature review using the following search words was performed: vaccine* OR immune* AND hesitancy OR confidence AND social media. Results: The search retrieved 277 results; 17 duplicates and 234 irrelevant articles were excluded. 43 articles were fully analyzed. Conclusions: An increasing number of parents are becoming vaccine hesitant. Their motives are complex and nuanced and involve factors related to vaccine safety and efficiency, perceived personal risks and benefits, socio-demographic and psychological characteristics. Attitudes toward vaccination differ in adolescents from their parents. In children with neurological disorders, factors involved in vaccination decision included physicians' knowledge of neurological diseases and parents’ concerns that vaccination would exacerbate the chronic disorder. Unfortunately, the current pandemic is associated with an increase in vaccine hesitancy and brought forward unique determinants. The social media platforms can be a tool for the anti-vaccine movement to spread misinformation, but it can also be valued as a way for promoting health and pro-vaccine information.
East-West Divide in the European Union: Legacy or Developmental Failure?
(European Institute of Romania, 2021) Volintiru, Clara; Bârgăoanu, Alina; Ștefan, George; Durach, Flavia
EU goes through a realignment process in the context of the demise of multilateralism, yet the impact of this process on the 11 new Member States from Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) is rarely discussed. There is a persistent East-West divide in the EU that is mainly socio-economic, even though often narrated as a political divide between older and newer Member States. The article explores in depth the current developmental metrics in CEE and argues that the progress that has been achieved in overall levels of convergence in the EU is yet to be reflected at subnational level, where great disparities persist. It is the developmental divide that continues to inform political divisions in Europe.
Fake News Going Viral: The Mediating Effect Of Negative Emotions
(University of Ss. Cyril and Methodius in Trnava, 2021-11-13) Udrea, Georgiana; Bârgăoanu, Alina; Corbu, Nicoleta; Durach, Flavia
In recent years, “fake news” has become a buzzword used to describe a variety of disinformation practices identifiable both in the traditional media, and in the digital environment. The goal of our paper is to investigate fake news, aiming at both clarifying the concept and discussing the possible integration of ideologically driven information under this large umbrella, as well as investigating conditions under which various types of fake news have the potential to go viral. In this study we consider ideologically driven news as a form of disinformation, by the mere reason that there is a clear intention to deceive behind this type of news. At the same time, we argue that, compared to no more than one-two decades ago, ideologically driven information is potentially much more harmful, by virtue of the potential of being shared, easily further disseminated within echo-chambers and with the help of filter bubbles. In line with recent studies, we contend that, at its core, the fake news problem concerns the economics of emotion, specifically how emotions are used and often abused to foster audience’s attention, engagement, and willingness to share content. In this context, and under the recent political circumstances in Romania (marked by anti-government protests and public opposition to the ruling political party), our aim is to better understand how people’s susceptibility to disseminate deceitful information is enhanced by various forms and valences of politically biased fake news, and what is the role of specific emotions in explaining this process. Bulding on Tandoc et al.’s classification of fake news, we propose a 2x2x2 experimental design, in which we manipulated intention to deceive, level of facticity and valence. The survey experiment (N=813) tests two positive (enthusiasm and contentment) and two negative (anger and fear) discrete emotions as mediators of the main effect of potential of viralisation effects (i.e. how likely users are to share fake news on a social network). Results show that negatively biased fake news enhances people’s willingness to share the news story, while positively biased fake news has no significant effect on the viralisation potential. Moreover, the potential for viralisation is mediated by negative emotions, but not by positive ones.
Predictors of COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptance: The Role of Trust and the Influence of Social Media
(2024-02-21) Bârgăoanu, Alina; Buturoiu, Raluca; Durach, Flavia
The study discusses the predictors of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance in Romania. We implemented a national survey using an online panel (N = 1006), representative for the online population of Romania aged 18 or higher, conducted on 13–26 October, 2020, by the national pollster QUESTIA. Results show a predictive model of people’s willingness to take the COVID-19 vaccine, in which trust in the actors and institutions involved in the management of the crisis is the strongest predictor, followed by the belief in toxic or misleading narratives about vaccines and the COVID-19 pandemic, and media consumption patterns. Education is a moderator of the relationship between trust and the willingness to vaccinate. Implications for professionals in the social work fields, as well as for policy-makers are discussed. Results could be used as a starting point for developing recommendations for evidence-based health communication in the context of the COVID-19 vaccination campaign.
Predictors of Engagement on Social Media and Instant Messaging Platforms during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Evidence from Romania
(2022-12) Corbu, Nicoleta; Bârgăoanu, Alina; Durach, Flavia; Ștefăniță, Oana
The COVID-19 pandemic raised important questions about news patterns of interaction on social network sites (SNS) and instant messaging platforms (IM), especially in the context of the massive replacement of face-to-face interactions with mediated interactions, due to the restrictive measures taken in many parts of the world. In this context, by means of a national survey conducted in Romania (N=1160), we investigated people’s willingness to engage on social media and instant messaging platforms about the topic of the COVID-19 pandemic. Results show that people are eager to share information about the topic on both SNS and IM, less interested in getting involved in debates, and even less in voluntary work. All these behaviors are predicted by trust of SNS and news consumption on these platforms, perceived size of the personal digital network, belief in conspiracy theories about the virus, uncertainty about the impact of the crisis, and level of education.
Tackling Disinformation: EU Regulation of the Digital Space
(European Institute of Romania, 2020-06) Durach, Flavia; Bârgăoanu, Alina; Nastasiu, Cătălina
This paper provides an overview of current responses to fake news and digital disinformation inside and outside the EU, and assesses the advantages and disadvantages of each solution. Four approaches emerge: (1) self-regulation (i.e. actions undertaken on a voluntary basis by the digital platforms); (2) co-regulation (i.e. cooperation framework between EU-level and national-level authorities, the internet platform companies, media organizations, researchers, and other stakeholders); (3) direct regulation (i.e. legal measures & sanctions); and (4) audience-centred solutions (i.e. factchecking and media literacy). We argue in favour of the co-regulation approach, while drawing attention to some current challenges in the response against disinformation. Furthermore, we need to go beyond the understanding of disinformation as an information/ truth fraud, and draw additional measures to reflect the particular understanding of disinformation as a form of users’ engagement fraud.
The COVID-19 Infodemic–An Accelerated Version of the New Digital Ecosystem
(College of Communication and Public Relations, NUPSPA, 2020) Bârgăoanu, Alina; Durach, Flavia
The COVID-19 pandemic is unprecedented in terms of its quasi-simultaneous global reach and its multilayered character (medical, economic, political, geopolitical and social). It is also unprecedented because it is the first pandemic of the digital age, thus offering an accelerated version of the digital eco-system: interconnectedness across countries, regions, and even continents; globalization/ trans-nationalization of the national/ local communication spaces coupled by the circulation of global polluted narratives which are strikingly similar in terms of content in spite of their appearance of being tailored, even “extremely personalized” to fit local characteristics; and the preeminence of digital platforms within the communication ecosystem, including the semi-private or downright private ones such as WhatsApp or Facebook private messaging applications. Out of these emerging features, we will focus our analysis on the last interconnected two: globalization of seemingly local narratives and the emergence of the WhatsApp or Facebook private instant messaging applications as prominent transmission/ contagion means. We will do so by carrying an in-depth case study of Romania, which may offer an insight into more generalizable trends.

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