Anastasia Kozyreva|Stephan Lewandowsky|Ralph Hertwig
Citizens Versus the Internet: Confronting Digital Challenges With Cognitive Tools
Max Planck Institute for Human Development|University of Bristol|University of Western Australia|Max Planck Institute for Human Development
internet evolved ubiquitous indispensable digital environment people communicate seek information make decisions despite offering various benefits online environments also replete smart highly adaptive choice architectures designed primarily maximize commercial interests capture sustain users attention monetize user data predict influence future behavior online landscape holds multiple negative consequences society decline human autonomy rising incivility online conversation facilitation political extremism spread disinformation benevolent choice architects working regulators may curb worst excesses manipulative choice architectures yet strategic advantages resources data remain commercial players one way address imbalance interventions empower internet users gain control digital environments part boosting information literacy cognitive resistance manipulation goal present conceptual map interventions based insights psychological science begin systematically outlining online offline environments differ despite increasingly inextricable identify four major types challenges users encounter online environments persuasive manipulative choice architectures aiassisted information architectures false misleading information distracting environments next turn psychological science inform interventions counteract challenges digital world distinguishing among three types behavioral cognitive interventionsnudges technocognition boostswe focus boosts identify two main groups aimed enhancing peoples agency digital environments eg selfnudging deliberate ignorance b aimed boosting competencies reasoning resilience manipulation eg simple decision aids inoculation cognitive tools designed foster civility online discourse protect reason human autonomy manipulative choice architectures attentiongrabbing techniques spread false information