“Malicious actors profiling and detection in Online Social Networks through Artificial Intelligence (MARTINI)”, Nr.S-HIST-ERA-22-1

 

Project No. S-HIST-ERA-22-1              
Project title: „Malicious actors profiling and detection in Online Social Networks through Artificial Intelligence (MARTINI)”
Project duration: from 2023-01-01 to 2025-12-31
Project manager: Aelita Skaržauskienė

Summary: This research project is based on the idea that building trust in science should be a response to the changing situation in the media ecosystem. Understanding the importance of science is one of the fundamental conditions for the development of society. By identifying the attitudinal, cognitive and behavioral characteristics of different groups of the population and by creating user profiles, it will be possible to develop evidence-based recommendations for targeted and effective science communication targeting different groups of users. Attitudes towards science are regularly surveyed in many countries (Eurobarometer, 2005; OST and Welcome Trust, 2000). The results show that trust in science as a source of information depends on citizens’ political beliefs, economic or social status (Funk, 2017).  Studies have found differences between urban and rural populations (Kawamoto et al., 2013), demonstrated that knowledge of different scientific fields varies by socio-demographic characteristics (Kristiansen et al., 2016), and found a positive relationship between interest in science and online search activity for scientific knowledge (Nisbet et al., 2002). Objective 1. To identify the main health-related anti-science/disinformation narratives and to assess the dissemination of science communication in Lithuania. Task 2. To identify the factors that strengthen/weaken constructive attitudes towards scientific knowledge and critical attitudes towards fake news, using a representative sample of the Lithuanian population. Task 3. To provide recommendations for targeted science communication targeting segments of society, choosing the most effective means and information channels.