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Volume 28, Issue 1 (Spring 2026)
Advances in Cognitive Sciences 2026, 28(1): 63-74 |
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Ethics code: IR.UT.IRICSS.REC.1402.052
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Sanaeipour N, Hatami J, Ershadmanesh S, Behboodi M, Mahdavi S M. Boosting fake news detection through gaming: Comparing two approaches to fake news production vs. accurate news production. Advances in Cognitive Sciences 2026; 28 (1) :63-74
URL: http://icssjournal.ir/article-1-1836-en.html
URL: http://icssjournal.ir/article-1-1836-en.html
Nafiseh Sanaeipour1 
, Javad Hatami2 , Sara Ershadmanesh3 , Maryam Behboodi4 , Seyed Mohammad Mahdavi *5
, Javad Hatami2 , Sara Ershadmanesh3 , Maryam Behboodi4 , Seyed Mohammad Mahdavi *5
1- PhD Student in Cognitive Psychology, Institute for Cognitive Science Studies, Tehran, Iran
2- Professor, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
3- Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Computational Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tubingen, Germany
4- Assistant Professor, Department of Statistics, Faculty of Converging Sciences and Technologies, Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch, Tehran, Iran
5- Assistant Professor, Malek-Ashtar University, Tehran, Iran
2- Professor, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
3- Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Computational Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tubingen, Germany
4- Assistant Professor, Department of Statistics, Faculty of Converging Sciences and Technologies, Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch, Tehran, Iran
5- Assistant Professor, Malek-Ashtar University, Tehran, Iran
Abstract: (894 Views)
Introduction: The spread of fake news has become a serious challenge for public opinion and social decision-making. Psychological inoculation theory, particularly through educational games such as “Bad News”, offers a preemptive strategy for enhancing cognitive resistance against misleading information. The main aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of two inoculation-based mechanisms (practice in producing fake news versus practice in producing true news) in improving the ability to detect fake news within the Iranian media context.
Methods: An experimental pretest/posttest design with a control group was used. In total, 192 Iranian users (age: 18-30) participated in this study. The participants were divided into three groups of 64 using a sequential random allocation procedure. Two intervention groups played cognitive games (“Bad News” and “Good News”), while the control group played Tetris. Each game taught the four most common methods of producing fake news. The fake news detection ability was assessed using a two-item test (two versions) at pretest and posttest. The data were analyzed using Generalized Linear Mixed Model analysis.
Results: The results indicated a statistically significant interaction between the group and the time (P<0.001). Overall, the treatment groups improved significantly from pretest to posttest, while the control group decreased (P<0.001). Specifically, the detection ability increased by 15.2%, 8.3%, and -3.2% for the “Good News”, “Bad News”, and control groups, respectively.
Conclusion: Defense practice (true news) can increase cognitive immunity by ~15%, which is ~1.7 times higher than that of the attack practice (fake news) of ~8%. Although there is no doubt about the contribution of cognitive inoculation, further research is needed to generalize these results to different populations.
Methods: An experimental pretest/posttest design with a control group was used. In total, 192 Iranian users (age: 18-30) participated in this study. The participants were divided into three groups of 64 using a sequential random allocation procedure. Two intervention groups played cognitive games (“Bad News” and “Good News”), while the control group played Tetris. Each game taught the four most common methods of producing fake news. The fake news detection ability was assessed using a two-item test (two versions) at pretest and posttest. The data were analyzed using Generalized Linear Mixed Model analysis.
Results: The results indicated a statistically significant interaction between the group and the time (P<0.001). Overall, the treatment groups improved significantly from pretest to posttest, while the control group decreased (P<0.001). Specifically, the detection ability increased by 15.2%, 8.3%, and -3.2% for the “Good News”, “Bad News”, and control groups, respectively.
Conclusion: Defense practice (true news) can increase cognitive immunity by ~15%, which is ~1.7 times higher than that of the attack practice (fake news) of ~8%. Although there is no doubt about the contribution of cognitive inoculation, further research is needed to generalize these results to different populations.
Type of Study: Research |
Received: 2025/11/4 | Accepted: 2026/07/28 | Published: 2026/09/6
Received: 2025/11/4 | Accepted: 2026/07/28 | Published: 2026/09/6
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