I recently read a study conducted at the University of Connecticut to determine how much people trusted what they read on the Internet. Researchers created a factitious web site about a factitious animal (endangered tree octopus in the Pacific Northwest) and then asked the students to research the animal and waited to see if they found the web site they planted and if they would critically think about what they read or take it as truth.
So what did the students do, well you guessed it, they not only believed the information on the bogus site, they even believed it after they were told it was bogus.
The professor concluded that even though most people say they don’t believe everything they find on the Internet, they really do. He also concluded that we are losing our critical thinking skills because of the prolific use of the Internet as a research tool.
The bottom line is that there is some good information on the web, but don’t throw away your library card just yet, because there is an equal amount of nonsense written by folks with an opinion that is not grounded in fact.
Gordon Crovitz summarized all this in a recent column:
“The Web promotes personalization that can become fragmentation;
creates information abundance that can become information overload; allows for creativity of amateurs while undermining the business models of professionals; and enables the wisdom of crowds
that can result in the stupidity of the lowest common denominator.” (Gordon Crovitz, “Is technology good or bad? Yes.” © WSJ)
With the easy availability of more information than ever before it is vitally important that we all hone our critical thinking skills lest we all be swept away by the “stupidity of the lowest common denominator”. Not only is information easy to access, it is also easy to create. Be careful of the voices you listen to online because that “expert” may simply be self-proclaimed with no credentials other than that he or she is simply online.
I fear that the more we begin to trust online sources the less we will trust our common sense and critical thinking skills. If we cease to question what we read, we lose our own instincts and ability discern truth from fiction and even right from wrong. Learn to look for proof because just as everything you hear is not true, neither is everything you read online.
To read about the study go to http://blog.mysanantonio.com/education/2011/02/tree-octopus-exposes-internet-illiteracy/
