Examining the Impacts of a Gamified Media Literacy Intervention in Indonesia

Integrating popular messaging applications and gamified approaches is an emerging strategy to deploy media literacy interventions at-scale. The present study examines the impacts of a WhatsApp-styled intervention in prebunking mis- and dis-information among an age and gender stratified sample of 504...

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Main Authors: Michael H. Becker, Michael J. Williams, Alexa Hassan
Format: Article
Language:deu
Published: Daniel Koehler 2025-06-01
Series:Journal for Deradicalization
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.sfu.ca/jd/index.php/jd/article/view/1055
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author Michael H. Becker
Michael J. Williams
Alexa Hassan
author_facet Michael H. Becker
Michael J. Williams
Alexa Hassan
author_sort Michael H. Becker
collection DOAJ
description Integrating popular messaging applications and gamified approaches is an emerging strategy to deploy media literacy interventions at-scale. The present study examines the impacts of a WhatsApp-styled intervention in prebunking mis- and dis-information among an age and gender stratified sample of 504 Indonesian adults. Guided by the Theory of Planned Behavior, the intervention aimed to inoculate participants to common disinformation tactics and arguments through interactive elements simulating group chats with loved ones around three major topic areas (health, news and finance). Data were collected on participants' attitudes, subjective norms, self-efficacy, intentions, and ability to detect disinformation before and after the intervention. Following the intervention, participants reported a statistically significant increase in motivation to detect fake information, perception that it is normal to identify disinformation online, and greater motivation to combat misinformation. These impacts were sustained two weeks after the intervention. While self-efficacy increased immediately after the intervention, it returned to baseline levels at the two-week follow-up, despite this initial increase. Findings provide valuable insights into the potential of gamified interventions to effectively influence key behavioral determinants related to disinformation consumption and sharing, particularly motivation and perceived norms.
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spelling doaj-art-b68c8725a1cd463f8205384484ff82932025-08-20T03:28:06ZdeuDaniel KoehlerJournal for Deradicalization2363-98492025-06-0143Summer140175Examining the Impacts of a Gamified Media Literacy Intervention in IndonesiaMichael H. Becker0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0168-1499Michael J. Williams1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5630-9814Alexa Hassan2University of Nebraska - OmahaThe Science of P/CVEMoonshotIntegrating popular messaging applications and gamified approaches is an emerging strategy to deploy media literacy interventions at-scale. The present study examines the impacts of a WhatsApp-styled intervention in prebunking mis- and dis-information among an age and gender stratified sample of 504 Indonesian adults. Guided by the Theory of Planned Behavior, the intervention aimed to inoculate participants to common disinformation tactics and arguments through interactive elements simulating group chats with loved ones around three major topic areas (health, news and finance). Data were collected on participants' attitudes, subjective norms, self-efficacy, intentions, and ability to detect disinformation before and after the intervention. Following the intervention, participants reported a statistically significant increase in motivation to detect fake information, perception that it is normal to identify disinformation online, and greater motivation to combat misinformation. These impacts were sustained two weeks after the intervention. While self-efficacy increased immediately after the intervention, it returned to baseline levels at the two-week follow-up, despite this initial increase. Findings provide valuable insights into the potential of gamified interventions to effectively influence key behavioral determinants related to disinformation consumption and sharing, particularly motivation and perceived norms.https://journals.sfu.ca/jd/index.php/jd/article/view/1055disinformationmisinformationinoculationtheory of planned behaviorgamification
spellingShingle Michael H. Becker
Michael J. Williams
Alexa Hassan
Examining the Impacts of a Gamified Media Literacy Intervention in Indonesia
Journal for Deradicalization
disinformation
misinformation
inoculation
theory of planned behavior
gamification
title Examining the Impacts of a Gamified Media Literacy Intervention in Indonesia
title_full Examining the Impacts of a Gamified Media Literacy Intervention in Indonesia
title_fullStr Examining the Impacts of a Gamified Media Literacy Intervention in Indonesia
title_full_unstemmed Examining the Impacts of a Gamified Media Literacy Intervention in Indonesia
title_short Examining the Impacts of a Gamified Media Literacy Intervention in Indonesia
title_sort examining the impacts of a gamified media literacy intervention in indonesia
topic disinformation
misinformation
inoculation
theory of planned behavior
gamification
url https://journals.sfu.ca/jd/index.php/jd/article/view/1055
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