Cliff Schaffer

Cliff Schaffer

@cliffaschaffer.bsky.social

Founder of Schaffer Library of Drug Policy druglibrary.org/schaffer See me on "Hooked: Illegal Drugs and How They Got That Way." I am that kid your parents warned you about all grown up. Old enough to know better. Too young to let it stop me.

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Cliff Schaffer
@cliffaschaffer.bsky.social

Personality and political ideology interact dynamically to predict who spreads misinformation online. Research shows that neither political beliefs nor personality traits act completely alone; rather, specific psychological profiles within political groups drive sharing behavior.

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Cliff Schaffer
@cliffaschaffer.bsky.social

Agreeableness: People low in agreeableness are more likely to circulate political misinformation. Because false political news is often hostile or aggressive toward an opposing group, disagreeable individuals are less deterred by the potential conflict sharing it might cause.

Cliff Schaffer
@cliffaschaffer.bsky.social

The Role of "Dark" Personality Traits A distinct subset of misinformation is spread knowingly by users with malevolent psychological traits. According to data compiled in the Harvard Kennedy School Misinformation Review, roughly 14% of people admit to intentionally sharing false political data.

Cliff Schaffer
@cliffaschaffer.bsky.social

Personality and political ideology interact dynamically to predict who spreads misinformation online. Research shows that neither political beliefs nor personality traits act completely alone; rather, specific psychological profiles within political groups drive sharing behavior.

View full thread
Cliff Schaffer
@cliffaschaffer.bsky.social

Extraversion: Studies published in the Journal of Management Information Systems indicate that highly extraverted individuals are more prone to share fake news. The social gratification desire for engagement, and urge to actively post often outweigh their evaluation of whether it is actually true.

Cliff Schaffer
@cliffaschaffer.bsky.social

Personality and political ideology interact dynamically to predict who spreads misinformation online. Research shows that neither political beliefs nor personality traits act completely alone; rather, specific psychological profiles within political groups drive sharing behavior.

View full thread
Cliff Schaffer
@cliffaschaffer.bsky.social

The "Need for Chaos": For individuals low in conscientiousness, a craving for systemic chaos or a desire to actively disrupt the status quo often fuels their willingness to spread false narratives.

Cliff Schaffer
@cliffaschaffer.bsky.social

Belief vs. Sharing: While both liberals and conservatives frequently believe false stories that align with their preexisting biases (motivational reasoning), actual sharing behavior spikes heavily among low-conscientiousness conservatives.

Cliff Schaffer
@cliffaschaffer.bsky.social

Personality and political ideology interact dynamically to predict who spreads misinformation online. Research shows that neither political beliefs nor personality traits act completely alone; rather, specific psychological profiles within political groups drive sharing behavior.

Cliff Schaffer
@cliffaschaffer.bsky.social

The Interplay of Conscientiousness and Politics Prominent studies, including research published by Duke University, reveal that low-conscientiousness conservatives (LCCs) are statistically more likely to share misinformation than other groups.

Cliff Schaffer
@cliffaschaffer.bsky.social

High Conscientiousness protects: Highly conscientious individuals (who are organized, responsible, and self-disciplined) rarely share fake news, regardless of whether they are liberal or conservative.

Cliff Schaffer
@cliffaschaffer.bsky.social

Thought for the day. If the merchants on the internet track me well enough to know that I shopped for a toaster then they ought to be able to track me well enough to know when I bought one and stop sending me ads. If they are going to monitor me, they should do it right.

Cliff Schaffer
@cliffaschaffer.bsky.social

From today's LA Times, a reminder of what we are actually dealing with: “How many people in the government are on the porn sites when they’re supposed to be on the job?” he said. “How many people are getting transgender changes, when they’re supposed to be actually on the job?”

Cliff Schaffer
@cliffaschaffer.bsky.social

Trump has halted all hiring for summer jobs in Yosemite, including pick who pick up the trash and firefighters. There is no word yet on a reservation system. Without the system, Yosemite was as crowded worse than NY rush hour. Yosemite has fires every year. Without firefighters, Yosemite will be

Cliff Schaffer
@cliffaschaffer.bsky.social

One of the things I have found notable about marijuana is what it DOESN'T do. We could reasonably expect that it would cause lung damage, health problems, and impaired driving, among other things. But we have tens of millions of people using it (some heavily) for the last 50+ years and the stats 1/

Cliff Schaffer
@cliffaschaffer.bsky.social

don't match the reasonable expectations. In lots of cases, it is unclear whether mj does anything at all or the evidence is contradictory, containing both benefits and detriments. Such a case is driving. Still, after all these years. www.nytimes.com/2025/01/01/u...

nytimes.comAs Marijuana Use Grows, Effect on Road Safety Remains a Blind Spot (Gift Article)Scientists want to create breathalyzers that show how recently a driver used marijuana. Researchers also are studying how cannabis impairs motor skills and reflexes for habitual and occasional users.

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