Understanding users’ intention to verify content on social media platforms

The spread of inaccurate or “fake” content over social media platforms (SMP) has become a major societal challenge with significant social and political repercussions. Studies in the IS field have examined the credibility of online information as a key construct. However, little attention is paid to the behavior of individuals when faced with questionable information. This study draws from the elaboration likelihood model and theory of attribution to develop a research model that explains the conditions under which people verify messages that they receive and view over SMP. We theorize that message quality and the relational proximity of the sender influence the likelihood of verifying content, and that incongruence of the content with prior beliefs of the receiver moderates the influence of message quality on the intention to verify. We test our model using the vignette method with four scenarios. The initial results and implications of these results are discussed.