Abstract

One of the central aspects that explain the spread of fake news in social media is that people share them with their contacts. This study is the first investigation that longitudinally examines the variables that explain why users share information in the health area. Using two waves of a nationally representative sample of Chileans, we pinpoint the relevant causal factors. Analysis of the panel data indicates that four variables largely explain this phenomenon: 1) Attention to health issues; 2) Trust in information shared by others; 3) Trust in the media; 4) Credibility in fake news.