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illusory truth
You repeat a lie until it sounds like truth.
The illusory truth effect shows that repeated statements are judged as more likely to be true than non-repeated statements, even when the information contradicts existing knowledge.
The original claim suggests repeated falsehoods are universally more credible than accurate facts, which misrepresents the effect as a total displacement of, rather than a bias against, knowledge.
Your brain prefers easy familiarity over difficult truth.
Where this comes from
- Study
- Fazio et al., 2015, Journal of Experimental Psychology
- What the check found
- The effect increases perceived truth, but the claim exaggerates the magnitude, implying repetition overrides factual accuracy in all cases.
- Confidence
- Solid, with limits
Related
One of these every day, and every one names the study it came from. When a finding is contested, it says so.