Vem kan man lita på? : Hur ungdomar bedömer trovärdigheten av information på Facebook

Social media today constitute a big part of everyday life for adolescents, but we believe that there is an inadequate knowledge of how young people in everyday contexts go about evaluating and reflecting upon the information mediated through Facebook. This study aims to examine how adolescents in their everyday life judge the credibility of information mediated through Facebook. In order to attain the aim the study also seeks to answer how adolescents reflect upon information on Facebook, what is their own role in the production of content and also to identify their cognitive resources and the practical doings which they apply in order to judge the credibility of the information. The theoretical framework on which the study is based are Patrick Wilson's theory of Cognitive authority and the theory of Uses and Gratifications. The data was accumulated by conducting two focus group interviews with a total of eight respondents, each focus group comprising four respondents. The study found that the content the respondents are exposed to is dependent on their own actions and that it is also a result of a wider range of age groups being more active on Facebook. Many of the respondents do not put much trust in the information and most of them are also passive in the production of it. The study also identified the following methods the respondents use when they evaluate the credibility of the information: to examine the sources, determine if there is any underlying political interest, reputation, how it is expressed, their attitude towards the information, compare sources, common sense and experience