A type of reasoning in which, when people are using information-based reasoning, they have access to both associative and systematic strategies. 

Information-based reasoning

A "legitimate" question is considered to have more than one answer that is possible. On the other hand, a "illegitimate" question is not as open-ended, meaning that there should only be one possible answer. Making the question, "should Britain leave the EU?", a crucial part of the Brexit campaign converted the question itself into a legitimate question, resulting in strong polarization amongst British citizens.

Legitimate vs Illegitimate Questions

1. creating the appearance of a culturally relevant “legitimate” question 
2. framing the issue as an identity-based rather than an information-based concern
3. presenting a clear identity-based choice, and framing alternative choices as identity threatening.

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Disinformation is information that is (verifiably) false or misleading that is purposefully spread to misinform the public. 

Disinformation 

Oyserman, D., & Dawson, A. (2020). Your fake news, our facts: Identity-based motivation shapes what we believe, share, and accept. In R. Greifeneder, M. Jaffé, E. J. New- man, & N. Schwarz (Eds.), The psychology of fake news: Accepting, sharing, and correcting misinformation (pp. 173–195). London: Routledge. 

Your fake news, our facts: Identity-based motivation shapes what we believe, share, and accept

Inoculating someone (in the context of fake news) is an attempt to reduce an individual's susceptibility to accepting fake news by presenting them with misinformation and giving them the tools to recognize it as such. The theory comes directly from an immunological analogy about virus protection; in the psychological sense, inoculation is giving someone a "weakened" version of misleading info, which leads "mental antibodies" formed, making them "immune" to persuasion.

See "How Disinformation is Disseminated"

Inoculation Theory

- Impersonation: Posing as a real person/organization or claiming to be a reputable organization without any credentials. 
- Emotional Content
- Polarization: Using tactics like false amplification to push people to either side of the spectrum.
- Conspiracy
- Discrediting opponents
- Trolling: The act of attempting to elicit a response by baiting.
- Doubtful consensus messaging


Disinformation Strategies

Campaigns that paint a certain course of action as being specific to one’s identity. These campaigns emphasize that not taking that certain action threatens one’s identity itself.

Disinformation Campaigns

Steps Taken for a "Deformer" to  Effectively Provide Disinformation 

According to Guess & Lyons (2020) misinformation and disinformation differ regarding the author's/creater's intent. Misinformation and Disinformation are often difficult to distinguish because it’s difficult to tell whether someone spread wrong information intentionally (Disinformation) or unintentionally (Misinformation). If political misinformation is spread by politicians it's usually considered as disinformation. Also, fake news which are organized and spread by established news organizations are considered disinformation.

Distinction between Misinformation and Disinformation

- Psychological Stress
- Economic Damage
- Sexual Violence 
- Physical Harm 

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