Testing Digital Interventions to Strengthen Electoral Trust: A WhatsApp Field Experiment During Brazil’s 2026 Elections
Can AI-powered conversations help citizens think more critically about election misinformation? This project conducts a randomized field experiment during Brazil’s October 2026 national elections using WhatsApp, the country’s dominant messaging platform. Participants who express skepticism about electoral institutions will engage in brief AI-mediated conversations grounded in established psychological techniques—including motivational interviewing, perspective-taking, and critical thinking exercises. The study tests whether these scalable digital interventions can reduce conspiracy beliefs and strengthen trust in democratic processes. By positioning AI as a tool for reflection rather than correction, this research offers a new model for technology-mediated democratic engagement with global applicability.
