Fig. 3

Mean perceived credibility rating (1 = Not at all credible to 10 = Completely credible) for real (gray line) and fake (black line) news articles across levels of analytical reasoning (continuous; indexed by Cognitive Reflection Test (CRT) scores) in Study 1 (Panel A) and Study 2 (Panel B). Error bars denote standard errors. The medium analytical reasoning level indicates the mean CRT score in the current sample while the low and high levels indicate 1 SD below and above the mean CRT score, respectively. Note that the y-axis ranges from 1 to 7 to reflect the actual range of responses given by participants. Consistent across both studies, perceived credibility for real news was not influenced by levels of analytical reasoning, while higher analytical reasoning was associated with less perceived credibility for fake news