AI-Driven Misinformation, Psychological Vulnerability, and Democratic Resilience in West African Civic Ecosystems

Abstract

In recent years, young Africans' ability to access information and engage in public discourse has increased via civic digitalization and political life. Civic digitalization and political life have impacted how they access information and engage in public discourse and democratic processes. These have opened new opportunities for civic engagement and political participation but have also led to the spread of misinformation, emotional manipulation, information overload, and mentally difficult communications. In the study of misinformation and digital governance, there has been a growing focus on this phenomenon. Still, little attention has been paid to the psychological factors that shape susceptibility to manipulative information and their implications for democratic resilience. The purpose of this paper is to examine the link between psychological vulnerability, susceptibility to misinformation and democratic resilience in the civic ecosystems of youths in West Africa. The research was conducted using a qualitative systematic review method, which brings together evidence from the fields of Psychology, civic technology, digital behaviour, AI governance, and democratic studies. The review highlights how emotional vulnerability, information overload, stress responses, and online behavioural conditioning can affect civic reasoning, trust-building, political participation, and susceptibility to misinformation. It also shows how resilient democratic citizens are challenging for all citizens, not just for institutional capacity but also for emotion regulation capacity, critical evaluation of information, and reflective engagement in digitally mediated environments. The paper's main argument is that, to tackle current democratic challenges, digital governance should be grounded in a psychologically informed framework. It therefore recommends boosting AI literacy, civic psychoeducation, digital well-being programs, ethical governance programs, and civic education for resilience. The study proposes that fostering psychologically resilient civic cultures is a key element in strengthening democratic stability and informed civic participation in the fast-changing digital landscape in West Africa.