Unmasking Superspreaders: Data-Driven Approaches for Identifying and Comparing Key Influencers of Conspiracy Theories on X.com

TL;DR

This paper analyzes the behaviors of human superspreaders and bots spreading conspiracy theories on social media, proposing new metrics for their identification and offering insights for mitigation strategies.

Contribution

It introduces novel behavioral metrics and an adapted H-Index for identifying key conspiracy spreaders, differentiating human superspreaders from bots based on linguistic and structural features.

Findings

Superspreaders use more complex language and less hashtags.

Bots favor simpler language and strategic hashtag use.

An adapted H-Index effectively identifies human superspreaders.

Abstract

Conspiracy theories can threaten society by spreading misinformation, deepening polarization, and eroding trust in democratic institutions. Social media often fuels the spread of conspiracies, primarily driven by two key actors: Superspreaders -- influential individuals disseminating conspiracy content at disproportionately high rates, and Bots -- automated accounts designed to amplify conspiracies strategically. To counter the spread of conspiracy theories, it is critical to both identify these actors and to better understand their behavior. However, a systematic analysis of these actors as well as real-world-applicable identification methods are still lacking. In this study, we leverage over seven million tweets from the COVID-19 pandemic to analyze key differences between Human Superspreaders and Bots across dimensions such as linguistic complexity, toxicity, and hashtag usage. Our analysis reveals distinct communication strategies: Superspreaders tend to use more complex language and substantive content while relying less on structural elements like hashtags and emojis, likely to enhance credibility and authority. By contrast, Bots favor simpler language and strategic cross-usage of hashtags, likely to increase accessibility, facilitate infiltration into trending discussions, and amplify reach. To counter both Human Superspreaders and Bots, we propose and evaluate 27 novel metrics for quantifying the severity of conspiracy theory spread. Our findings highlight the effectiveness of an adapted H-Index for computationally feasible identification of Human Superspreaders. By identifying behavioral patterns unique to Human Superspreaders and Bots as well as providing suitable identification methods, this study provides a foundation for mitigation strategies, including platform moderation policies, temporary and permanent account suspensions, and public awareness campaigns.