Academic Staff
- HHB806, Hung Hom Bay Campus
- +852 2766 4826
- wenting.yu@polyu.edu.hk
SCOPUS ID
Google ScholarBiography
Prof. Yu’s current research focuses on three areas. The first is the dissemination of misinformation and the effects of fact-checking. She has published more than 20 journal articles on this topic. The second area is human-AI interaction, which sheds light on the social roles of AI. The third area examines the use of virtual reality interventions in healthcare and education. Overall, her research aims to explore the relationships between humans and new media technologies. She employs both quantitative and qualitative research methods. She has published in top peer-reviewed journals such as New Media & Society, Communication Research, Telematics and Informatics, and Government Information Quarterly.
Prof. Yu is the Programme Leader of Master of Arts in Global Communication and Event Hosting Arts (MAGCEHA, https://www.polyu.edu.hk/study/pg/tpg/2026/72029-ehf-ehp). Before joining the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, she has taught at the City University of Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Baptist University.
Education and Academic Qualifications
- 2022
PhD in Media and Communication, City University of Hong Kong
Academic and Professional Experience
- 2022 – 2023
Postdoctoral Fellow, School of Journalism and Communication, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
Teaching Areas
- Generative AI for Innovative Communications
- Analytic Skills and Techniques for Language and Communication Professionals
- Interpersonal and Mass Media Communication in Global Context
Research Interests
Selected Publications
- Shen, F., Jiang, M., & Yu, W. (2025). Not all fact-checkers are created equal: how fact-checkers’ political bias influences users’ fact-checking behavior. Chinese Journal of Communication, 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1080/17544750.2025.2547989
- Wang, T., & Yu, W*. (2024). The elephant in the room: Prior exposure to misinformation and correction effect. Sage Open, 14(4), 21582440241305654. https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440241305654
- Huang, G., Jia, W., & Yu, W. (2024). Media literacy interventions improve resilience to misinformation: A meta-analytic. Communication Research. https://doi.org/10.1177/00936502241288103
- Wei, R., Lo, W., Guo, J., & Yu, W. (2024). An unhelpful chain: Antecedents and consequences of COVID-19 news avoidance in China and Singapore. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 68(5), 694-713. https://doi.org/10.1080/08838151.2024.2394200
- Jia, W., Sun, M., Huang, G., Payton, B. & Yu, W. (2024). The indirect effects of health information seeking on health behaviors: Health literacy matters. Health Education & Behavior, 52(1), 113-121. https://doi.org/10.1177/10901981241278587
- Sun, M., Jia, W., Huang, G., Yu, W. & Payton, B. (2024). Empowering or backfiring? The paradoxical effects of digital media skills on depression through (mis)information sharing on social media. Current Psychology, 43(34), 27969-27981. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-024-06413-7
- Wei, R., Lo, VH., Zhang, X., Guo, J., & Yu, W*. (2024). A comparative study of public support for the Zero-COVID policy in Beijing, Taipei, and Singapore: The role of media attention and perceived social impact. International Journal of Public Opinion Research, 36(3), edae040. https://doi.org/10.1093/ijpor/edae040
- Yu, W., Chen, Z., Meng, X., Yan, Q. (2024). Persuading COVID-19 conspiracy theories: The effects of far-right websites and conservative mainstream media. Sage Open, 14(2), 21582440241258026.
- Yu, W., & Shen, F. (2024). Mapping verification behaviors in the post-truth era: A systematic review. New Media & Society, 26(3), 1703-1727. https://doi.org/10.1177/14614448231191138
- Yu, W., Payton, B., Sun, M., Jia, W., & Huang, G. (2023). Towards an integrated framework for misinformation and correction sharing: A systematic review across domains. New Media & Society, 25(8), 2241-2267. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444822111656
- Wang, T., & Yu, W*. (2022). Alternative sources use and misinformation exposure and susceptibility: The curvilinear moderation effects of socioeconomic status. Telematics and Informatics, 70, 101819. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tele.2022.101819
- Yu, W., Shen, F., & Min, C. (2022). Correcting science misinformation in an authoritarian country: An experiment from China. Telematics and Informatics, 66, 101749. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tele.2021.101749
- Yu, W. (2021). News portrayals of child sexual abuse in China: Changes from 2010 to 2019. Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 30(5), 524-545. https://doi.org/10.1080/10538712.2021.1897916
- Yu, W., & Shen, F. (2021). Does fact-checking habit promote COVID-19 knowledge during the pandemic? Evidence from China. Public Health, 196, 85-90. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.puhe.2021.05.005
- Dai, Y., Yu, W., & Shen, F. (2021). The effects of message order and debiasing information in misinformation correction. International Journal of Communication, 15, 1039-1059. https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/view/15364
- Min, C., Shen, F., & Yu, W. (2021). Removing incivility from Google: What determines the number of government content take-down requests? Government Information Quarterly, 38(1), 101542. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.giq.2020.101542
- Yu, W., & Shen, F. (2021). The relationship between online political engagement and privacy protection behaviors: Evidence from 10 Asian societies. Behaviour & Information Technology, 41(13), 2819-2834. https://doi.org/10.1080/0144929x.2021.1953597
- Min, C., Shen, F., Yu, W., & Chu, Y. (2020). The relationship between government trust and preventive behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic in China: Exploring the roles of knowledge and negative emotion. Preventive Medicine, 141, 106288. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ypmed.2020.106288
- Huang, G. & Yu, W. (2024). Exposure to misinformation: Patterns and predictors. In Wei. R (Eds.), Miscommunicating the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Asian Perspective, 47-68. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ypmed.2020.106288
- Wei, R., Yu, W., & Guo, J. (2024). Swamped: Misinformation and information overload. In Wei. R (Eds.), Miscommunicating the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Asian Perspective,155-175. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003355984-9
- Shen, F., Yu, W., Min, C., Ye, Q., Xia, C., Wang, T., Wu, Y. (2021). CyberCan: A new dictionary for Cantonese social media text segmentation. SocArXiv. https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/tyjr7
- Jan. 2026 – Jan. 2029
(PI) Investigating and Training Information Verification Skills among Older Adults: An Intervention Program Based on Mixed-Method Research. Research Grants Council of Hong Kong (HKD 649,400) - Jul. 2024 – Oct. 2026
(PI) Validating the Scale of News Verification. Start-up fund, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (HKD 499,800)
- Sept. 2025 – Aug. 2027
(Co-I) Detecting Stigma Evolution in Social Media and Doctor-to-Patient Conversations: A Natural Language Processing Approach. Interdepartmental Collaboration, Faculty of Humanities, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (HKD 239,400). - Sept. 2025 – Aug 2026
(Co-I) Actualising the Applicability and Potential Benefits of Humour in Education using GenAI and Technologies: A Cross-Institutional and Cross-Disciplinary Collaboration. Teaching Development and Language Enhancement Grant (HKD 1,650,000). - Jun. 2023 – May 2027
(Co-I) Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities. Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China (No. 23NJYH10, RMB 400,000).
- 2025 - Present
Editorial Board Membership, Humanities and Social Sciences Communications - 2026 - Present
Editorial Board Membership, Sage Open
- ICA
- AEJMC
- IAMCR
- 2024
Top Paper Award, The 74th Conference of International Communication Association, Chinese Communication Association - 2024
Jake Liang Top Paper Award, The 74th Conference of International Communication Association, Division of Human-Machine Communication
