Trust and coordinated inauthentic behaviour

Social media have proven to be an important source of political information. Given the potential of affecting the (political) opinions of large quantities of users, we have seen the emergence of actors that in coordinated ways tries to mislead others when it comes to their identities and activities – a phenomenon that has started to be associated with the term “coordinated inauthentic behavior” (CIB). This includes fully automated fake accounts (bots) human driven accounts (trolls) or accounts that alternates between the two. These are often deployed at mass in order to control and shape online political debate and public opinion by infiltrating online social networks, amplifying (or burying) certain narratives, supporting (or undermining) certain political actors, spreading disinformation and increasing perceived lines of conflict online – often in relation to ongoing elections. Previous research on these types of deceptive behaviors has focused heavily on detection and mapping their behaviors and activities. The effects of CIB on their surroundings does, however, remain poorly understood. I suggest to study how communicative activities surrounding the existence and activities of CIB could lead to effects on trust. I explore these potential effects using an experimental approach.