Motivation and personality: A comparative study of social media use and misinformation in the United States and China

Abstract Objective Scholarship has now recognized the potentially detrimental effects of social media on political knowledge, but the question as to whether political knowledge and susceptibility to misinformation are related remains open. Furthermore, there are not many cross‐national comparison studies. This study compares the general and differential factors of the mechanisms of misinformation formation in social media between China and the United States from the perspectives of media factors and psychological factors. Methods Using the 2020 Netizen Social Awareness Survey, we analyze the relationships between social media, personality traits, cognitive closure, and misinformation in China and the United States. Results The study shows that social media such as Microblog and Twitter do not mislead news consumers. Personality traits and motivational factors have a significant impact on people's misinformation. Authoritarian personality is a general psychological factor affecting public misinformation. Moreover, under different media systems in China and the United States, the impact of social media on misinformation varies with the degree of cognitive closure. Conclusion It is evident that in the era of social media, cultivating rational and knowledgeable democratic citizens cannot focus solely on the role of the media. It must also consider the cultural and psychological characteristics of the national population.