Kim decodes disinformation

By Hugo Gerbich-Pais     10/22/24 11:09pm

What do some alcoholic Korean businessmen and lying American politicians have in common? Minjae Kim, an assistant professor at the Jones School of Business, has an answer. 

Kim, who has a Ph.D. in economic sociology, said both groups either uphold or break social norms to be perceived as authentic. His interdisciplinary work straddles business, sociology, economics and political science. His research is especially relevant this November, he says, as politicians try to amass trust with voters in the weeks before the Nov. 5 election.

While the subject matter of his research varies, ultimately Kim said he’s interested in strategic coordination and interaction — that is, how people work to curry favor in their environment. He studies issues from voter disinformation, to examining how female business founders present themselves to venture capitalists. 

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“His work on decision-making offers important insights  … which in turn can inform policy making and systemic change,” Alina Zhong, one of Kim’s research assistants, said.

Social science research, Kim said, is often motivated by researchers attempting to explain a puzzling phenomenon. His interest in authenticity sparked when he observed the art market, noticing that wealthy “high-status” buyers would purchase “low-status” art from untrained artists. 

“We found that high-status people might consume these kinds of ‘low-status products’ because they are trying to gain authenticity from [the product’s quality], not because of the art itself,” Kim said. “One of my colleagues … suggested we look at how [Donald] Trump gained his perception of authenticity.”

Kim and his collaborators examined the 2016 presidential election and voter perception of the Republican and Democratic nominees, Trump and Hillary Clinton.

“We were essentially interested in why some ‘lying demagogues’ like Trump appear authentic, and why other lying politicians like Clinton don’t,” Kim said. 

“By breaking the established norm, you’re essentially sticking it to the political establishment,”  Kim continued. “The more flagrantly and explicitly you break the norm, the more authentically you appear.”  

Kim’s research can also help explain why voters respond to disinformation, he said. 

“We surveyed Trump voters as well as non-Trump voters, and the Trump voters often recognized Trump’s statements as not based on objective evidence, but they still rated the statement as [“true”], because they saw the statement as pushing forward American priorities,” Kim said. “They see [the statements] as effective in communicating a deeper truth, even though they know that it is not based on objective evidence.” 

Throughout Kim’s research, he has found that this phenomenon affected both Republicans and Democrats, Clinton and Trump voters alike. 

As voters consider who to vote for in this upcoming election, Kim’s advice is to consider policy, not just party. 

“We often let [our] partisan identity dictate our choices, even though our policy positions might not necessarily align with those politicians,” Kim said. “Practicing stepping out of the partisan identity to see the policies as they are, would be my number one advice for anybody, including myself.”

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