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Can virtual reality (VR) lead to more desirable persuasion effects than videos in communicating the science of contentious issues like climate change? And, will these effects differ between messages that offer hope versus fear? We addressed these questions with a 2 (Modality: Desktop VR vs. Unidirectional video) × 2 (framing: Gain vs. Loss) between-subjects experiment (N = 130), and found that VR triggered more fearful responses, which in turn led to more persuasive outcomes. It also increased individuals' attitudes toward climate change mitigation policy when the experience was loss-framed, but backfired when the experience was gain-framed. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the e-commerce context, are we persuaded more by a product recommendation that matches our preferences (content filtering) or by one that is endorsed by others like us (collaborative filtering)? We addressed this question by conceptualizing these two filtering types as cues that trigger cognitive heuristics (mental shortcuts), following the heuristic-systematic model in social psychology. In addition, we investigated whether the degree to which the recommendation matches user preferences (or other users' endorsements) provides an argument for systematic processing, especially for those who need deeper insights into the accuracy of the algorithm, particularly in product categories where quality is subjective. Data from a 2 (algorithm type: content vs. collaborative filtering) x 3 (percentage match: low vs. medium vs. high) x 2 (product category: search vs. experience) + 2 (control: search and experience) between-subjects experiment (N = 469) reveal that for experience products, consumers prefer content-based filtering with higher percentage matches, because it is perceived as offering more transparency. This is especially true for individuals with high need for cognition. For search products, however, collaborative filtering leads to more positive evaluations by triggering the "bandwagon effect." These findings have implications for theory pertaining to the use of artificial intelligence in strategic communications and design of algorithms for e-commerce recommender systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increasing implementation of algorithms across various news platforms, understanding news consumers' subjective perceptions of algorithmic-based news recommender systems has become critical. A between-subjects experiment (News Recommender System type: content-based filtering vs. collaborative filtering vs. human editorial choice-based recommender system) with 161 participants revealed that participants tended to trust the collaborative filtering system and perceive news recommended by the system to be more credible and less biased compared to editorial choices-based or content-based recommender systems – due to the triggering of the homophily heuristic – even though the three systems recommended the same set of news. Implications were discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The arrival of ChatGPT and other artificial intelligence (AI) writers has captured the popular imagination, but also raised grave concerns. What are the implications of the widespread deployment of such content generation technologies? How should we, as communication scholars, think about and study AI writing tools? We discuss these questions by reflecting on research highlighting the psychological effects of AI as a source of communication. We identify key future research directions, including a redefinition of concepts like creativity, addressing major weaknesses of AI writers, and motivating design of better AI tools with an eye toward reclaiming human agency in the post-ChatGPT era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of a stable catalyst with excellent catalytic performance for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in alkaline environments is a key reaction in various electrochemical technologies. In this work, single-atom catalysts (SACs) systems in which scandium (Sc), a rare earth metal, with different N/C coordination environments (ScNxC3−x@SACs and ScNxC4−x@SACs of Sc) were systematically studied with the help of density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The results of the structural thermodynamic stability analysis indicated that the ScNxC3−x@SACs and ScNxC4−x@SACs systems are more stable with increasing N atom doping concentration around Sc. The ScN3, ScN3C, and ScN4 with better stability were selected as the objects of subsequent research. However, ScN3 and ScN4 form Sc(OH)2N3 and Sc(OH)2N4 structures with double-hydroxyl groups as ligands because of the strong adsorption of OH species, whereas the strong adsorption of OH species by ScN3C causes structural instability. Here, the overpotential (η) of Sc(OH)2N3 was 1.03 V; Sc(OH)2N4 had two reaction paths and the η of path 1 was 0.80 V, which was 0.30 V lower than that of path 2. Therefore, Sc(OH)2N4 can be used as a stable and promising OER catalyst with easy desorption of O2 and good cycle performance. The hydroxyl ligand modification of Sc-NxC3−x@SACs and Sc-NxC4−x@SACs provides a method for studying the catalytic performance of other rare earth elements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]