Mental health misinformation on social media: Review and future directions

Abstract

Social media use for health information is extremely common in the United States. Unfortunately, this use may expose users to misinformation. The prevalence and harms of misinformation are well documented in many health domains (e.g., infectious diseases). However, research on mental health misinformation is limited. Our review suggests that mental health misinformation is common, although its prevalence varies across disorders and treatment types. Individual differences in susceptibility to misinformation have been documented for health misinformation generally but less so for mental health specifically. We discuss conceptual issues in defining mental health misinformation versus other classifications such as overgeneralizations from personal experience. Although there is clear evidence for false and actively misleading content, future research should also explore the role of negative healthcare experiences and health disparities on mental health misinformation on social media.

Keywords: Mental health; Misinformation; Psychotherapy; Social media.