Abstract

The expansion of online misinformation has become a pressing issue, affecting individuals’ perspectives of social norms and psychological well-being. While digital platforms provide convenient and efficient means of exchanging information, they also expose young people to erroneous and misleading content. This essay examines the dangers and impacts of false information in the modern digital age, specifically on the vulnerable group of adolescents. This essay first addresses how misinformation hinders adolescents’ cognitive development in memory, attentional, and stress-coping mechanisms. As disruption extends to identity formation, adolescents are often drawn to misinformation that reinforces aspects of their identity, such as political and social beliefs. Furthermore, solutions are proposed to mitigate the spreading of misinformation, such as developing censorship mechanisms to block fake news and instituting media rules to assist in the eradication of misinformation via fast-track reporting systems. Though eradicating false information is difficult, further implementation through educational campaigns to raise awareness of the dangers of false information and institutions that provide lectures to develop critical thinking skills related to digital literacy can be critical in reducing the risks of misinformation. Given the considerable impact of misinformation on adolescents, media platforms and organizations must handle the issue with a plan that reduces the spread of disinformation and creates a safer digital environment.

Keywords: Online misinformation, Adolescents, Cognitive development, Beliefs

Copyright © 2024 Scholar of Tomorrow. All SoT articles are distributed under the attribution non-commercial, with no derivative license. This means that anyone is free to share, copy, and distribute an unaltered article for non-commercial purposes provided the original author and source are credited.