Perceived community alignment increases information sharing
Abstract It has been proposed that information sharing, which is a ubiquitous and consequential behavior, plays a critical role in cultivating and maintaining a sense of shared reality. Across three studies, we test this theory by investigating whether or not people are especially likely to share in...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Nature Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59915-8 |
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| _version_ | 1849402022820839424 |
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| author | Elisa C. Baek Ryan Hyon Karina López Mason A. Porter Carolyn Parkinson |
| author_facet | Elisa C. Baek Ryan Hyon Karina López Mason A. Porter Carolyn Parkinson |
| author_sort | Elisa C. Baek |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract It has been proposed that information sharing, which is a ubiquitous and consequential behavior, plays a critical role in cultivating and maintaining a sense of shared reality. Across three studies, we test this theory by investigating whether or not people are especially likely to share information that they believe will be interpreted similarly by others in their social circles. Using neuroimaging data collected while people who live in the same residential community viewed brief film clips, we find that more similar neural responses across participants is associated with a greater likelihood to share content. We then test this relationship using two behavioral studies and find (1) that people are particularly likely to share content that they believe others in their social circles will interpret similarly and (2) that perceived similarity with others leads to increased sharing likelihood. In concert, our findings support the idea that people are driven to share information to create and reinforce shared understanding, which is critical to social connection. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-cf2735164e4c47d9a3de5e82a900d6b6 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2041-1723 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nature Communications |
| spelling | doaj-art-cf2735164e4c47d9a3de5e82a900d6b62025-08-20T03:37:38ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232025-07-0116111110.1038/s41467-025-59915-8Perceived community alignment increases information sharingElisa C. Baek0Ryan Hyon1Karina López2Mason A. Porter3Carolyn Parkinson4Department of Psychology, University of Southern CaliforniaDepartment of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesDepartment of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesDepartment of Mathematics, University of California, Los AngelesDepartment of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesAbstract It has been proposed that information sharing, which is a ubiquitous and consequential behavior, plays a critical role in cultivating and maintaining a sense of shared reality. Across three studies, we test this theory by investigating whether or not people are especially likely to share information that they believe will be interpreted similarly by others in their social circles. Using neuroimaging data collected while people who live in the same residential community viewed brief film clips, we find that more similar neural responses across participants is associated with a greater likelihood to share content. We then test this relationship using two behavioral studies and find (1) that people are particularly likely to share content that they believe others in their social circles will interpret similarly and (2) that perceived similarity with others leads to increased sharing likelihood. In concert, our findings support the idea that people are driven to share information to create and reinforce shared understanding, which is critical to social connection.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59915-8 |
| spellingShingle | Elisa C. Baek Ryan Hyon Karina López Mason A. Porter Carolyn Parkinson Perceived community alignment increases information sharing Nature Communications |
| title | Perceived community alignment increases information sharing |
| title_full | Perceived community alignment increases information sharing |
| title_fullStr | Perceived community alignment increases information sharing |
| title_full_unstemmed | Perceived community alignment increases information sharing |
| title_short | Perceived community alignment increases information sharing |
| title_sort | perceived community alignment increases information sharing |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59915-8 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT elisacbaek perceivedcommunityalignmentincreasesinformationsharing AT ryanhyon perceivedcommunityalignmentincreasesinformationsharing AT karinalopez perceivedcommunityalignmentincreasesinformationsharing AT masonaporter perceivedcommunityalignmentincreasesinformationsharing AT carolynparkinson perceivedcommunityalignmentincreasesinformationsharing |