Inaccurate prior beliefs undermine readers' ability to question online misinformation¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · theoretical r3 · q2
Currency · newest study 2026 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i? The more strongly pre-service teachers believed in learning styles, the more difficult it was for them to question the credibility of online texts containing learning-styles misinformation. → Carita Kiili 2026

Evidence¶

Carita Kiili 2026¶

Carita Kiili, Ivar Bråten, and Julie Coiro. (2026). The framework of prior knowledge in online credibility evaluation. Educational Psychologist. https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520.2026.2717081

q2 · i? · theoretical · r3

The review reports, citing Kulju et al. (2024), a study of second-year pre-service teachers in which stronger belief in learning styles made it harder to question online texts with learning-styles misinformation despite weak supporting evidence. No effect size is printed.

"the more strongly pre-service teachers believed in learning styles–a persistent myth in education–the more difficult it was for them to question the credibility of online texts containing misinformation about learning styles, even though the evidence presented for the inaccurate claims about learning styles was weak."

Discussion¶

Learner Variables¶

• Epistemic Beliefs — predictor: learners who differ on it differ in outcomes

Related Claims¶

• Belief in learning styles remains near-universal among educators, with pre-service teachers believing more than qualified teachers — related
• Prior knowledge can hinder credibility evaluation through selective attention and overconfidence — a broader claim this one bears on
• Instruction that confronts science misconceptions (conceptual-conflict interventions, refutation text) produces conceptual change more often than standard exposition — related
• Misconceptions were addressed in nine reviewed articles, all in science, via augmented activation, refutation texts, or analogical reasoning, though one study found activating inaccurate information may not be detrimental — related
• Cognitive conflict induced by refutational texts and conflicting perspectives may promote epistemic belief change in student teachers — related