IT IS not the narrative that Catalan separatists hoped for as they face a stand-off with the Madrid government over a planned independence vote in November.
For instance, if the media is not allowed to provide information about crimes, people might rely on rumors and hearsay, which can further exacerbate the situation.
Unfortunately, most of the studies that came to these conclusions were flawed: many results were anecdotal, and control groups were not established to take account of the placebo effect.