Gen Z, bad research, and the illusion of truth

Andrew Tenzer

This piece looks at how to measure the factors that influence young people’s buying habits in a robust and meaningful way.

In 1977, a study conducted at Villanova and Temple universities discovered a phenomenon called the illusory truth effect – the tendency to believe false information after repeated exposure. The effect is commonly used in lots of different fields such as politics, news media and even advertising (or as much as it can be without falling foul of the ASA).

You might think that the illusory truth effect is something we only use on unsuspecting audiences and that we as intelligent, well-informed individuals are able to rise above misinformation. After all, we’re supposed to be an evidence-based industry. Sadly this isn’t...

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