The Feeling of Rightness of the Illusory Truth Effect

This thesis investigates the relationship between the Illusory Truth Effect (ITE) and the Feeling of Rightness (FOR) in truth judgments. The ITE describes how repeated exposure to a statement can increase its perceived truthfulness due to enhanced processing fluency. The FOR, a metacognitive judgment reflecting confidence in one’s initial response, may influence both the speed and stability of truth evaluations. The research explores whether higher FOR correlates with faster response times and whether re-exposure to statements following metacognitive evaluation leads to increased fluency. The empirical section presents Experiment 1, in which 43 native Italian participants evaluated 80 true/false statements in a multi-phase task measuring truth judgments, FOR, and reaction times. Results are expected to show that repetition enhances truth judgments and reduces response times, and that higher FOR predicts both quicker decisions and greater consistency in repeated judgments. A second experiment, currently in preregistration, will examine whether syntactic complexity influences FOR, contributing further insight into the cognitive and metacognitive mechanisms underlying truth perception. Together, these studies aim to clarify how intuitive confidence and exposure shape our perception of truth, with implications for understanding belief formation in the context of misinformation.