Deactivation Experiments: Measuring the Causal Impacts of WhatsApp Usage

.title[
# <span style="font-size: 80%;"> Deactivation Experiments: Measuring the Causal Impacts of WhatsApp Usage</span>
]
.author[
### Tiago Ventura and Joshua Tucker
]
.date[
### <span style="font-size: 80%;"> <br> Comppit FGV Roundtable 2025 - June 2nd, 2025 </span> <br> <br> <span style = 'font-size: 70%;' > We gratefully acknowledge funding from McCourt School’s Tech and Policy Program and Project Liberty’s Institute for this project.
]

---

<div class="my-footer"><span>Tiago Ventura (Georgetown University) &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp &nbsp Comppit FGV Roundtable 2025</span></div>

---
class: middle
## Research Agenda

.content-box-gray[Understand information consumption via messaging apps, and identify causal effects of **.red[WhatsApp Usage]** on **.red[political]** and **.red[non-political]** attitudes.]

---
class:middle

## Papers

---
class: middle

### Multimedia Deactivation Experiment in Brazil, 2022

--
<svg viewBox="0 0 512 512" style="height:1em;position:relative;display:inline-block;top:.1em;" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg">  <path d="M504 256C504 119 393 8 256 8S8 119 8 256s111 248 248 248 248-111 248-248zm-448 0c0-110.5 89.5-200 200-200s200 89.5 200 200-89.5 200-200 200S56 366.5 56 256zm72 20v-40c0-6.6 5.4-12 12-12h116v-67c0-10.7 12.9-16 20.5-8.5l99 99c4.7 4.7 4.7 12.3 0 17l-99 99c-7.6 7.6-20.5 2.2-20.5-8.5v-67H140c-6.6 0-12-5.4-12-12z"></path></svg> **Problem**: Fully deactivating WhatsApp is neither possible nor ideal

- Disable their automatic download of media on WhatsApp
- Do not purposefully click and watch any media on WhatsApp

- **Start:** Three weeks before general election in Brazil.
- **End:** three days after the voting day.

--
---
class:middle, center, inverse

# Overview of the Experiment

---
class:middle

---
### Treatment Media Intervention & Compliance

.pull-left[
.center[
#### Intervention: Adding Friction
<img src="output_mpsa/ss_tmedia_examplereal_dlpre.png" width="60%" />
]
]

#### Compliance: Monitoring Behavior

]
]

---
class: center, middle, inverse

# Pre-Registered Results

---

### First-Stage Results

---
class:  middle

### Exposure to and Belief in News Headlines

- Participants are shown 8 news headlines; asked (a) whether they have seen this news before & (b) whether they think the news is true

- Four headlines are true news; four are misinformation stories

- Count how many (a) recalled & (b) accurately identified as T/F

---
### Effects on Exposure to Misinformation Rumors

---
### Reduction in exposure is large for false news

---
### Effects on Belief Accuracy

---
class:middle

## Downstream Effects: Measuring Polarization

- Participants are asked about their feelings towards with voters of two main Presidential Candidates (Lula and Bolsonaro) -- Affective Polarization

- We also ask their willingness to engage with voters from these candidates -- Social Polarization

- And their agreement across several policy issues salient in the election -- Ideological Polarization

---
class:middle

## Downstream consequences on political polarization

.center[
Can this short-term reduction in exposure to political misinformation change political attitudes and reduce polarization?
]

---
### Effects on Polarization

---
class:inverse, center, middle

# Additional Results

---
### Exposure and Partisanship

---
### Belief Accuracy Conditional on WhatsApp usage for Politics

---

## Discussion

---
class: middle
### Multi-Country Deactivation Experiment

- **Problem**: Single country studies have limited power to speak of contextual effects (and in our case, limited statistical power)

- **Summary**: Multicountry extension across three major Global South countries; Brazil, India and South Africa

- **Stronger Treatment**: Replicate Multimedia Deactivation + Time Reduction

- **More statistical power and external validity**: ~ 2500 participants across the three countries.

---
class:middle

### Multi-Country WhatsApp Partial Deactivation Experiment

-  **Design:** Partial Deactivation -> Friction + Incentive to reduce usage:

- **Media Treatment**: Disable their automatic download of media on WhatsApp, and do not purposefully click and watch any media on WhatsApp;
   - **Time Treatment:** Add time limit for WhatsApp usage per day + Limit Usage to 5min per day;

- **Duration:**

- **Treatment**: Change settings and behavior for 4 weeks (one month) leading up to election in three countries
   - **Control**: Change ONLY behavior for 3 days.
   
--

- **Multicountry Design:** selected some of the largest Global South countries having democratic elections in 2024.

- India: **General Election** Spring 2024
  - South Africa: **Presidential Election** Spring 2024
  - Brazil: **Local Election** Fall 2024

---
class:middle, center, inverse

# Experimental Design

---
class: middle

- Participants enrolled: 2426 (678 in India, 820 in South Africa, and 928 in Brazil)

- Final Sample: 2220 (653 in India, 742 in South Africa, and 825 in Brazil)

---
class:middle
### Treatment Time - Intervention & Compliance

.pull-left[
.center[
#### Intervention: Adding Friction
<img src="output/time-limite.png" width="55%" />
]
]

<img src="output_mpsa/ss_ttime_actualsubject_lightmode.png" width="60%" />
]
]

---
class:middle

### Treatment: Media Intervention & Compliance

.pull-left[
.center[
#### Intervention: Adding Friction
<img src="output_mpsa/ss_tmedia_examplereal_dlpre.png" width="60%" />
]
]

#### Compliance: Monitoring Behavior

]
]

---
class:middle, inverse, center
# Results

---
class:middle
## Exposure of Rumors and True News

Limiting WhatsApp usage reduces exposure to misinformation & news

---
class:  middle
## Belief Accuracy

A short-term reduction in exposure does not translate to changes in accuracy judgments

---
class:  middle
## Uncivil content more broadly

Using several different items, we find that limiting WhatsApp usage also reduces exposure to online incivility and low-quality political discourse

---
class:  middle
### Downstream consequences on political polarization

---
class: middle

### Are these nulls effects consistent with other studies?

**Yes**. Other studies with changes in consumption, but nulls on political attitudes:

- Multimedia whatsapp deactivation in Brazil, 2022 election .midgrey[(Ventura et al., 2025)]

- Recent Facebook/Instagram deactivation experiment in US and France .midgrey[(Allcott et al., 2024, Arceunaux et al., 2024)]

- Changing Facebook feed to chronological instead of algorithmic .midgrey[(Guess et al., 2023)]

- Removing re-shares from people's Facebook News Feed .midgrey[(Guess et al., 2024)]

- Installing a browser to signal when people are navigating on low-quality news websites  .midgrey[(Aslett et al., 2022)]

- And experiments incentivizing participants to take a "news vacation" for two weeks .midgrey[(Wojcieszak et al., 2022)]

---
class:  middle, center
### Downstream consequences on Non-Political Attitudes and Substitutes

Using several well-being items, we find that limiting WhatsApp usage makes participants feel better (happier, less anxious, less concerned about others)

**This occurs alongside increased offline activity.**

---
class:  middle, center

---
class:middle

## Key Takeaways

- WhatsApp is an important channel through which voters receive misinformation and news in major Global South democracies

- Reduced exposure to such information does not mechanically affect accuracy perceptions

- In the context of elections, WhatsApp also increases exposure to toxic content and uncivil political discussions

- ...none of this change meaningfully political attitudes (at least not within a short electoral period)

- Yet limiting WhatsApp usage **also** improves overall subjective well-being, and these effects are associated with higher time spent on offline activities.

---
class:center, inverse, middle

# Thank you!