Misinformation in the public around issues such as water fluoridation (Knox et al., 2017), climate change (Etkin & Ho, 2009), and vaccination (Kata, 2010) threatens to hamper efforts to promote public health and well-being, this is in spite of (and potentially a function of) of the increased availability to on-demand information sources via the internet (Fox & Jones, 2009). Attempts to counteract misinformation have had mixed effects, occasionally resulting in a "backfire effect", where pre-existing beliefs are exacerbated or entrenched rather than refuted (Cox & Tanford, 1989; Nyhan & Riefler, 2010; Nyhan, Riefler, Richey & Freed, 2014). In light of this, there is a need to understand what strategies that might be implemented in this medium are more effective in combating misinformation, and which are liable to promote these backfire effects. This study will implement a quasi-experimental design to test these interventions within the context of vaccination.
