Social media websites like Facebook offer migrants unprecedented access to an endless stream of information. At the click of a button, they can join groups of other people looking to migrate, read news from the country they hope to live in or find out more about asylum policies.

But the fact that anyone can post more or less anything they want on the social media website can make it hard for people to differentiate between legitimate (official news, government humanitarian agencies) and bogus sources.

The Immigration Policy Lab (IPL), a research think tank with offices in the US and Switzerland, published a study earlier this summer outlining how refugees and migrants engage with and assess information on social media.

Focusing on the impact of Syria’s civil war, which forced 5.5 million Syrians to seek refuge abroad, IPL analyzed the content, tone, and popularity of posts on Facebook pages meant to support Syrian refugees. Facebook is the most widely used social media platform among Syrians. 

The study analyzed over 143,200 posts, some 802,170 comments, and metadata on public Arabic-language Facebook pages built for Syrian refugees from 2013 to 2018 to understand online behavior and engagement. 

Smartphones are crucial information sources for migrants looking for safe travel routes and updates about current or potential security threats in their countries of destination. Studies indicate that for many Syrian refugees, smartphones are often considered more important than food, shelter, or access to other services.   

Unofficial and official sources

The study defined "unofficial sources" as websites or content from Facebook devoted to migration information without any known affiliation -- like posts from refugees themselves about their personal experiences or answers to questions posted by others. Researchers found that early on, these sorts of posts were shared on public Facebook pages at a much higher rate than official or news sources.

"Official sources" included content created by governments, NGOs or international organizations, and "news sources" included websites or Facebook pages affiliated with journalism outlets employing professional reporters. 

Around 2016, governments and humanitarian agencies moved to create information websites to meet refugees' needs for timely, accurate and trustworthy information.  

Some of these sites include Signpost, an outlet run by Mercy Corps, International Rescue Committee, and Internews, as well as our website InfoMigrants, which is financed by the European Union (EU).

The study noted that in 2016, the engagement levels with these sorts of official sources surpassed those of unofficial sources.

That could be due to the fact that the volume of official coverage of topics relevant to refugees -- such as asylum procedures, smuggling, overseas travel, and access to education and health care -- exceeded coverage of similar topics by unofficial sources starting around the same time.

"Across the whole study period, official sources received higher levels of engagement across all topics, with particularly high engagement on the topics of asylum and smuggling," the IPL wrote. 

As these sites were widely shared, there was also a noted increase in engagement with government and aid agency news sites, which were often cited as sources.

Also read: Rejected asylum application: What are my options?

Engagement factors  

The study also found that tone or how topics were framed played a key role in user engagement. To assess tone, IPL used a text analysis method to examine stories framed using an "encouraging tone" -- for example, pieces offering travel advice or services or outlining the possibilities and benefits of living in a particular country. 

On the other hand, a "discouraging tone" was used to describe stories that discussed obstacles to traveling and risks for Syrian refugees. 

IPL researchers found that Facebook users engaged with encouraging posts linking to news and official sources more often than discouraging posts. 

Credible information needed to cut through the noise 

The IPL study concluded that the higher engagement with posts linking to official sources regardless of the topic or tone of the message indicates up-to-date and trustworthy information is effective in cutting through the social media clutter.

The study also highlighted the importance of messaging tone in information dissemination.

"In today’s digital age, this sort of information provision is an increasingly critical element of emergency response. Understanding what information is shared and how refugees interact with it can help guide efforts to empower refugees to make safe, informed choices for themselves and their families," the IPL concluded. 

Also read: The EU's migration dilemma: Is sealing borders the solution?