Nadia Brashier
@nadiabrashier.bsky.social
assistant professor at UC San Diego. studying how people judge truth and fall for fake news across the lifespan
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
My first registered replication report, study on the illusory truth effect, and study published in PB&R with @lkfazio.bsky.social ‼️Preprint here: osf.io/preprints/ps...
Previous research found that the illusory truth effect was smaller for conspiracy statements than for trivia statements...
Previous research found that the illusory truth effect was smaller for conspiracy statements than for trivia statements...
OSF
osf.io
December 4, 2025 at 5:49 PM
My first registered replication report, study on the illusory truth effect, and study published in PB&R with @lkfazio.bsky.social ‼️Preprint here: osf.io/preprints/ps...
Previous research found that the illusory truth effect was smaller for conspiracy statements than for trivia statements...
Previous research found that the illusory truth effect was smaller for conspiracy statements than for trivia statements...
If you live in San Diego County and worry about the quality of your news diet, I’m giving a community talk at Borrego Springs Library today. It’s open to the public, nonpartisan, and starts at 5 PM. Come learn why people fall for fake news and how you can protect yourself 🗞️
December 2, 2025 at 5:11 PM
If you live in San Diego County and worry about the quality of your news diet, I’m giving a community talk at Borrego Springs Library today. It’s open to the public, nonpartisan, and starts at 5 PM. Come learn why people fall for fake news and how you can protect yourself 🗞️
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
Absolute debasement of academic standards
*student submits opinion in psych class
*gets bad grade
*instructor says she can make whatever arguments she wants but must draw on empirical sources
*student & Turning Point says her religious freedom & first amendment rights violated
*professor suspended
*student submits opinion in psych class
*gets bad grade
*instructor says she can make whatever arguments she wants but must draw on empirical sources
*student & Turning Point says her religious freedom & first amendment rights violated
*professor suspended
OU has put the professor here on administrative leave:
November 30, 2025 at 9:37 PM
Absolute debasement of academic standards
*student submits opinion in psych class
*gets bad grade
*instructor says she can make whatever arguments she wants but must draw on empirical sources
*student & Turning Point says her religious freedom & first amendment rights violated
*professor suspended
*student submits opinion in psych class
*gets bad grade
*instructor says she can make whatever arguments she wants but must draw on empirical sources
*student & Turning Point says her religious freedom & first amendment rights violated
*professor suspended
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
🚨 New working paper 🚨
Can LLMs with reasoning + web search reliably fact-check political claims?
We evaluated 15 models from OpenAI, Google, Meta, and DeepSeek on 6,000+ PolitiFact claims (2007–2024).
Short answer: Not reliably—unless you give them curated evidence.
arxiv.org/abs/2511.18749
Can LLMs with reasoning + web search reliably fact-check political claims?
We evaluated 15 models from OpenAI, Google, Meta, and DeepSeek on 6,000+ PolitiFact claims (2007–2024).
Short answer: Not reliably—unless you give them curated evidence.
arxiv.org/abs/2511.18749
November 29, 2025 at 10:06 PM
🚨 New working paper 🚨
Can LLMs with reasoning + web search reliably fact-check political claims?
We evaluated 15 models from OpenAI, Google, Meta, and DeepSeek on 6,000+ PolitiFact claims (2007–2024).
Short answer: Not reliably—unless you give them curated evidence.
arxiv.org/abs/2511.18749
Can LLMs with reasoning + web search reliably fact-check political claims?
We evaluated 15 models from OpenAI, Google, Meta, and DeepSeek on 6,000+ PolitiFact claims (2007–2024).
Short answer: Not reliably—unless you give them curated evidence.
arxiv.org/abs/2511.18749
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
The UW Center for an Informed Public is looking for postdocs (for 2026-2028) from across diverse disciplines whose research sheds light on the challenges of our modern information environment, promotes civic health, and/or helps people/communities navigate online spaces: apply.interfolio.com/177901
Apply - Interfolio
{{$ctrl.$state.data.pageTitle}} - Apply - Interfolio
apply.interfolio.com
November 24, 2025 at 6:26 PM
The UW Center for an Informed Public is looking for postdocs (for 2026-2028) from across diverse disciplines whose research sheds light on the challenges of our modern information environment, promotes civic health, and/or helps people/communities navigate online spaces: apply.interfolio.com/177901
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
🚨New WP🚨
Dialogues with our AI DebunkBot:
✔️Reduced belief in antisemitic conspiracy theories among believers
✔️Effect durable at 1+ month
✔️Improved attitudes towards Jews among initially negative participants
🟰Debunking works for deeply rooted, identity-linked conspiracies
osf.io/preprints/ps...
Dialogues with our AI DebunkBot:
✔️Reduced belief in antisemitic conspiracy theories among believers
✔️Effect durable at 1+ month
✔️Improved attitudes towards Jews among initially negative participants
🟰Debunking works for deeply rooted, identity-linked conspiracies
osf.io/preprints/ps...
November 22, 2025 at 3:23 PM
🚨New WP🚨
Dialogues with our AI DebunkBot:
✔️Reduced belief in antisemitic conspiracy theories among believers
✔️Effect durable at 1+ month
✔️Improved attitudes towards Jews among initially negative participants
🟰Debunking works for deeply rooted, identity-linked conspiracies
osf.io/preprints/ps...
Dialogues with our AI DebunkBot:
✔️Reduced belief in antisemitic conspiracy theories among believers
✔️Effect durable at 1+ month
✔️Improved attitudes towards Jews among initially negative participants
🟰Debunking works for deeply rooted, identity-linked conspiracies
osf.io/preprints/ps...
If you’re at #psynom25, stop by my lab’s posters and talks!
today 12 - 1:30 PM:
Jae counters the assumption that demand for political fact-checks is low (167)
@katie-allen.bsky.social finds that while repetition inflates many judgments, it doesn’t always create an illusion of creativity (168)
today 12 - 1:30 PM:
Jae counters the assumption that demand for political fact-checks is low (167)
@katie-allen.bsky.social finds that while repetition inflates many judgments, it doesn’t always create an illusion of creativity (168)
November 21, 2025 at 5:05 PM
If you’re at #psynom25, stop by my lab’s posters and talks!
today 12 - 1:30 PM:
Jae counters the assumption that demand for political fact-checks is low (167)
@katie-allen.bsky.social finds that while repetition inflates many judgments, it doesn’t always create an illusion of creativity (168)
today 12 - 1:30 PM:
Jae counters the assumption that demand for political fact-checks is low (167)
@katie-allen.bsky.social finds that while repetition inflates many judgments, it doesn’t always create an illusion of creativity (168)
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
Things that will get you kicked out of academia forever:
- taking maternity leave at the wrong time
- spending too much time with your kids
- reporting harassment
- not moving every 2-3 years
- taking a partner's job/preferences into account
- mouthing off before tenure
- taking maternity leave at the wrong time
- spending too much time with your kids
- reporting harassment
- not moving every 2-3 years
- taking a partner's job/preferences into account
- mouthing off before tenure
A guy makes ONE tiny mistake (has a years-long friendship with the world's worst sex trafficker; brags about sexually harassing colleagues; is racist; says women are stupid) and his whole LIFE is blown up (does slightly fewer speaking engagements; keeps teaching at #1 university)??!?!?!?!?!
So Harvard is keeping this guy, but Claudine Gay had to step down over ginned up plagiarism accusations and bad-faith accusations of anti-Semitism.
Got it.
Got it.
November 18, 2025 at 3:52 PM
Things that will get you kicked out of academia forever:
- taking maternity leave at the wrong time
- spending too much time with your kids
- reporting harassment
- not moving every 2-3 years
- taking a partner's job/preferences into account
- mouthing off before tenure
- taking maternity leave at the wrong time
- spending too much time with your kids
- reporting harassment
- not moving every 2-3 years
- taking a partner's job/preferences into account
- mouthing off before tenure
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
🚨Out in PNAS🚨
Examining news on 7 platforms:
1)Right-leaning platforms=lower quality news
2)Echo-platforms: Right-leaning news gets more engagement on right-leaning platforms, vice-versa for left-leaning
3)Low-quality news gets more engagement EVERYWHERE - even BlueSky!
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Examining news on 7 platforms:
1)Right-leaning platforms=lower quality news
2)Echo-platforms: Right-leaning news gets more engagement on right-leaning platforms, vice-versa for left-leaning
3)Low-quality news gets more engagement EVERYWHERE - even BlueSky!
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
November 14, 2025 at 2:35 PM
🚨Out in PNAS🚨
Examining news on 7 platforms:
1)Right-leaning platforms=lower quality news
2)Echo-platforms: Right-leaning news gets more engagement on right-leaning platforms, vice-versa for left-leaning
3)Low-quality news gets more engagement EVERYWHERE - even BlueSky!
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Examining news on 7 platforms:
1)Right-leaning platforms=lower quality news
2)Echo-platforms: Right-leaning news gets more engagement on right-leaning platforms, vice-versa for left-leaning
3)Low-quality news gets more engagement EVERYWHERE - even BlueSky!
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
I'll be starting as an Assistant Professor of Cognitive Science at Stony Brook in Fall '26!
My lab will take a social cognitive approach to studying how we form/update our beliefs and why we disagree about what is true vs false
I'll also be reviewing grad apps! See below for more info
My lab will take a social cognitive approach to studying how we form/update our beliefs and why we disagree about what is true vs false
I'll also be reviewing grad apps! See below for more info
November 6, 2025 at 3:59 PM
I'll be starting as an Assistant Professor of Cognitive Science at Stony Brook in Fall '26!
My lab will take a social cognitive approach to studying how we form/update our beliefs and why we disagree about what is true vs false
I'll also be reviewing grad apps! See below for more info
My lab will take a social cognitive approach to studying how we form/update our beliefs and why we disagree about what is true vs false
I'll also be reviewing grad apps! See below for more info
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
This is deeply sad, journalistically. Teen Vogue has done much brave political coverage in an age when few outlets are willing.
I was laid off from Teen Vogue today along with multiple other staffers, and today is my last day.
certainly more to come from me when the dust has settled more, but to my knowledge, after today, there will be no politics staffers at Teen Vogue.
certainly more to come from me when the dust has settled more, but to my knowledge, after today, there will be no politics staffers at Teen Vogue.
November 3, 2025 at 9:13 PM
This is deeply sad, journalistically. Teen Vogue has done much brave political coverage in an age when few outlets are willing.
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
I will be recruiting 🌟PhD students🌟 for my newish lab! If you're interested in learning & memory mechanisms applied to individual, interactive & collective behavior using computational modeling, real-world experiments and fMRI, email me! RTs much appreciated 🙏 rouhanilab.com
Interactive Cognition Lab | USC
Interactive Cognition Lab at USC, led by principal investigator, Dr. Nina Rouhani.
rouhanilab.com
October 24, 2025 at 4:57 PM
I will be recruiting 🌟PhD students🌟 for my newish lab! If you're interested in learning & memory mechanisms applied to individual, interactive & collective behavior using computational modeling, real-world experiments and fMRI, email me! RTs much appreciated 🙏 rouhanilab.com
I have such a great group of grad students, ya’ll. They are all just knocking it out of the park - every time I review their writing, code, graphs, I feel so proud 🥹
October 24, 2025 at 9:35 PM
I have such a great group of grad students, ya’ll. They are all just knocking it out of the park - every time I review their writing, code, graphs, I feel so proud 🥹
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
German study shows how far right sets agenda thanks to mainstream parties reshaping their communications to respond to what are initially fringe issues, boosting the spread of these ideas and signalling to voters that these ideas and stances were legitimate
shorturl.at/OFfig
shorturl.at/OFfig
German far right setting agenda as opponents amplify its ideas, study finds
Normalisation of far-right stances likely to affect success of such parties at ballot boxes across Europe, say researchers
www.theguardian.com
October 18, 2025 at 7:48 AM
German study shows how far right sets agenda thanks to mainstream parties reshaping their communications to respond to what are initially fringe issues, boosting the spread of these ideas and signalling to voters that these ideas and stances were legitimate
shorturl.at/OFfig
shorturl.at/OFfig
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
Politically Extreme Individuals Exhibit Similar Neural
Processing Despite Ideological Differences
www.apa.org/pubs/journal...
Processing Despite Ideological Differences
www.apa.org/pubs/journal...
October 12, 2025 at 1:09 PM
Politically Extreme Individuals Exhibit Similar Neural
Processing Despite Ideological Differences
www.apa.org/pubs/journal...
Processing Despite Ideological Differences
www.apa.org/pubs/journal...
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
New from me and @brendannyhan.bsky.social
Why Trump's "Compact for Academic Excellence" is a devil's bargain and should be rejected in all forms
www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...
Why Trump's "Compact for Academic Excellence" is a devil's bargain and should be rejected in all forms
www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...
Trump sent a 'compact' to our universities. They should reject this devil's bargain.
Any institution that yields to these broad and intrusive demands would forever be subservient to the whims of the government.
www.msnbc.com
October 7, 2025 at 1:22 PM
New from me and @brendannyhan.bsky.social
Why Trump's "Compact for Academic Excellence" is a devil's bargain and should be rejected in all forms
www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...
Why Trump's "Compact for Academic Excellence" is a devil's bargain and should be rejected in all forms
www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
If you aren't failing you aren't trying. Grad students and new faculty: the most prolific scholars are also the most prolific at getting rejected. Rejections suck but they are a big part of the publication process.
October 8, 2025 at 8:12 PM
If you aren't failing you aren't trying. Grad students and new faculty: the most prolific scholars are also the most prolific at getting rejected. Rejections suck but they are a big part of the publication process.
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
I'm recruiting grad students!! 🎓
The CoDec Lab @ NYU (codec-lab.github.io) is looking for PhD students (Fall 2026) interested in computational approaches to social cognition & problem solving 🧠
Applications through Psych (tinyurl.com/nyucp) are due Dec 1. Reach out with Qs & please repost! 🙏
The CoDec Lab @ NYU (codec-lab.github.io) is looking for PhD students (Fall 2026) interested in computational approaches to social cognition & problem solving 🧠
Applications through Psych (tinyurl.com/nyucp) are due Dec 1. Reach out with Qs & please repost! 🙏
codec lab
codec-lab.github.io
October 6, 2025 at 2:26 PM
I'm recruiting grad students!! 🎓
The CoDec Lab @ NYU (codec-lab.github.io) is looking for PhD students (Fall 2026) interested in computational approaches to social cognition & problem solving 🧠
Applications through Psych (tinyurl.com/nyucp) are due Dec 1. Reach out with Qs & please repost! 🙏
The CoDec Lab @ NYU (codec-lab.github.io) is looking for PhD students (Fall 2026) interested in computational approaches to social cognition & problem solving 🧠
Applications through Psych (tinyurl.com/nyucp) are due Dec 1. Reach out with Qs & please repost! 🙏
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
I'm recruiting PhD students to join my new lab in Fall 2026! The Shared Minds Lab at @usc.edu will combine deep learning and ecological human neuroscience to better understand how we communicate our thoughts from one brain to another.
October 1, 2025 at 10:39 PM
I'm recruiting PhD students to join my new lab in Fall 2026! The Shared Minds Lab at @usc.edu will combine deep learning and ecological human neuroscience to better understand how we communicate our thoughts from one brain to another.
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
Excited to share that I'm joining WashU in January as an Assistant Prof in Psych & Brain Sciences! 🧠✨!
I'm also recruiting grad students to start next September - come hang out with us! Details about our lab here: www.deckerlab.com
Reposts are very welcome! 🙌 Please help spread the word!
I'm also recruiting grad students to start next September - come hang out with us! Details about our lab here: www.deckerlab.com
Reposts are very welcome! 🙌 Please help spread the word!
DeckerLab
www.deckerlab.com
October 1, 2025 at 6:30 PM
Excited to share that I'm joining WashU in January as an Assistant Prof in Psych & Brain Sciences! 🧠✨!
I'm also recruiting grad students to start next September - come hang out with us! Details about our lab here: www.deckerlab.com
Reposts are very welcome! 🙌 Please help spread the word!
I'm also recruiting grad students to start next September - come hang out with us! Details about our lab here: www.deckerlab.com
Reposts are very welcome! 🙌 Please help spread the word!
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
🚨 New preprint 🚨
Across 3 experiments (n = 3,285), we found that interacting with sycophantic (or overly agreeable) AI chatbots entrenched attitudes and led to inflated self-perceptions.
Yet, people preferred sycophantic chatbots and viewed them as unbiased!
osf.io/preprints/ps...
Thread 🧵
Across 3 experiments (n = 3,285), we found that interacting with sycophantic (or overly agreeable) AI chatbots entrenched attitudes and led to inflated self-perceptions.
Yet, people preferred sycophantic chatbots and viewed them as unbiased!
osf.io/preprints/ps...
Thread 🧵
October 1, 2025 at 3:16 PM
🚨 New preprint 🚨
Across 3 experiments (n = 3,285), we found that interacting with sycophantic (or overly agreeable) AI chatbots entrenched attitudes and led to inflated self-perceptions.
Yet, people preferred sycophantic chatbots and viewed them as unbiased!
osf.io/preprints/ps...
Thread 🧵
Across 3 experiments (n = 3,285), we found that interacting with sycophantic (or overly agreeable) AI chatbots entrenched attitudes and led to inflated self-perceptions.
Yet, people preferred sycophantic chatbots and viewed them as unbiased!
osf.io/preprints/ps...
Thread 🧵
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
Our new paper finds that AI can overcome partisan #bias
We find that AI sources are preferred over ingroup and outgroup sources--even when people know both are equally accurate (N = 1,600+): osf.io/preprints/ps...
We find that AI sources are preferred over ingroup and outgroup sources--even when people know both are equally accurate (N = 1,600+): osf.io/preprints/ps...
September 30, 2025 at 1:13 PM
Our new paper finds that AI can overcome partisan #bias
We find that AI sources are preferred over ingroup and outgroup sources--even when people know both are equally accurate (N = 1,600+): osf.io/preprints/ps...
We find that AI sources are preferred over ingroup and outgroup sources--even when people know both are equally accurate (N = 1,600+): osf.io/preprints/ps...
Does anyone have tips for writing a strong letter of intent? Or even examples they’d be willing to share? I’ve only submitted full grant proposals so far.
October 1, 2025 at 6:50 PM
Does anyone have tips for writing a strong letter of intent? Or even examples they’d be willing to share? I’ve only submitted full grant proposals so far.
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
Academia still hates women. But we resist! Solidarity with all women in academia who face everyday sexism, erasure, harassment etc. and with all who were pushed out 💔❤️
Some of the brightest lights I’ve known have been forced to eat shit repeatedly in their careers. And they were the “lucky” ones—in that they were able to stay in the game. Many more just got completely pushed out and we never know about them except as faceless statistics.
August 31, 2025 at 10:41 PM
Academia still hates women. But we resist! Solidarity with all women in academia who face everyday sexism, erasure, harassment etc. and with all who were pushed out 💔❤️
Reposted by Nadia Brashier
I know there's a lot happening today, but this is sneaking in under the radar. This proposed new rule would absolutely crush foreign PhD students, potentially making it impossible for them to enroll with any certainty of their ability to finish www.politico.com/news/2025/08...
August 28, 2025 at 3:29 AM
I know there's a lot happening today, but this is sneaking in under the radar. This proposed new rule would absolutely crush foreign PhD students, potentially making it impossible for them to enroll with any certainty of their ability to finish www.politico.com/news/2025/08...