The potential of ICT: reducing rural residents’ cognitive biases towards ecological policies

Rural residents’ cognitive biases regarding ecological policy lead to suboptimal implementation in rural areas. This study empirically investigates how Information and Communication Technology (ICT) usage affects and reduces these biases, focusing on different information channels. Our findings demonstrate that ICT usage significantly reduces rural residents’ cognitive biases towards ecological policies, with short video platforms showing the most substantial effect compared to search engines and messaging software. Further mechanistic analyses indicate that using ICT helps reduce cognitive biases by enhancing ecological knowledge and environmental attention. Additionally, rural residents’ ability to assimilate knowledge and perceive environmental risks strengthens the positive impact of ICT on ecological knowledge and environmental attention. As for implications, policymakers should improve rural digital infrastructure, diversify channels for ecological policy dissemination, and promote digital literacy among rural residents. Moreover, interventions should be thoughtfully tailored to accommodate the diverse characteristics of rural populations for optimal effectiveness.