Believing misinformation is a “win” for some people, even when proven false
Why people approve of misinformation
Our results highlight the limits of directly combating misinformation, because for some people, the literal truth is not the point.
For example, President Donald Trump falsely claimed in August 2025 that crime in Washington, DC, was at an all-time high, generating countless fact-checks of his premises and food for thought about his dissociation from reality.
But we believe that to someone with a symbolic mentality, the debunkers simply demonstrate that they are the ones reacting and are therefore weak. The correct information is readily available but is irrelevant to someone who prioritizes a symbolic show of force. What matters is to signal that we are not listening and that we are not being influenced.
In fact, for symbolic thinkers, almost all claims should be justifiable. The more outlandish or easily disproven something is, the more powerful it can seem when stuck to it. Being an Edgelord – a contrarian online provocateur – or an outright lie can, in its own strange way, seem “authentic.”
Some people may also view the claims of their favorite dissemblers as provocative trolling, but, given the connection between this mindset and authoritarianism, they want these outlandish claims to be acted upon anyway. Deploying National Guard troops to Washington, for example, may be the desired end goal, even if the justification given is an obvious farce.
Is it really 5D chess?
It’s possible that beliefs that are symbolic, but not entirely true, have downstream benefits, such as serving as negotiation tactics, tests of loyalty, or a long game of pretend until you get it right that, one way or another, eventually becomes a reality. Political theorist Murray Edelman, known for his work on political symbolism, noted that politicians often prefer to score symbolic points rather than achieve results: it’s easier. Leaders can offer symbolism when they have little tangible to provide.
Randy Stein is an associate professor of marketing at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona and Abraham Rutchick is a professor of psychology at California State University, Northridge.
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
