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Digital Politics: Mobilization, Engagement, and Participation

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... The questions were created according to aspects detected in the previous literature on political participation in the digital environment (Boczek & Koppers, 2019;Koc-Michalska & Lilleker, 2017;Gil de Zúñiga et al., 2021;Lappas et al., 2022;Pang & Woo, 2020). In this regard, actions related to three functions are distinguished: information, participation, and engagement. ...
... It is primarily used to publish or share content related to current news. In line with the results previously obtained(Koc-Michalska & Lilleker, 2017), WhatsApp is used similarly to other social media platforms, such as Twitter and Facebook, in which citizens feel free to comment on the news with other users. Therefore, in line with what is argued by Casero-Ripollés (2018), WhatsApp is becoming a primary source for information and news, in which users receive information about current affairs and share it among contacts. ...
Article
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Mobile instant messaging services such as WhatsApp have become increasingly relevant among citizens in recent years. By a quantitative approach based on a survey (n=1,202), our objective is to find out why citizens use WhatsApp and, to be more specific, why they use the WhatsApp service offered by the city council of the municipality of residence where they live. The results show how age, gender, and the respondents' educational level are related to the different uses they make of WhatsApp, especially concerning actions related to participation. Second, the local government WhatsApp service still has an intermediate penetration among citizens, so there is much room for improvement. Finally, the data reveals that age and gender determine the uses of the City Council WhatsApp service. These findings provide interesting data for local governments to improve the relationship with citizens through this mobile communication tool.
... The debate on the political function of social media is therefore still open, with many arguing that digital tools are rarely used in order to engage with political parties or electoral candidates and that their main role is focused on the contribution to learning and to the building of communities, facilitating the participation and the engagement (Koc-Michalska & Lilleker, 2017), and even if we were to compare them with other types of participation such as protests and, above all, civic engagement (Boulianne, 2015), the relationship between the use of social media and participation in electoral campaigns is much weaker. However, social media have become an important arena of action, especially for organisations belonging to civil society, so that, besides mobilising efforts during electoral campaigns, mobilisation also occurs in other moments (Rosenstone & Hansen, 1993), resulting in a political participation more oriented towards civic engagement (Koc-Michalska & Lilleker, 2017). ...
... The debate on the political function of social media is therefore still open, with many arguing that digital tools are rarely used in order to engage with political parties or electoral candidates and that their main role is focused on the contribution to learning and to the building of communities, facilitating the participation and the engagement (Koc-Michalska & Lilleker, 2017), and even if we were to compare them with other types of participation such as protests and, above all, civic engagement (Boulianne, 2015), the relationship between the use of social media and participation in electoral campaigns is much weaker. However, social media have become an important arena of action, especially for organisations belonging to civil society, so that, besides mobilising efforts during electoral campaigns, mobilisation also occurs in other moments (Rosenstone & Hansen, 1993), resulting in a political participation more oriented towards civic engagement (Koc-Michalska & Lilleker, 2017). ...
Chapter
Over the last few years, social media have become important instruments for the construction of political engagement, thus generating a new space of analysis which allows the use of advanced research techniques, such as text mining or machine learning. In this chapter, we review the fundamental interpretation of political engagement, the debate on the very concept of engagement and its relationship with political participation through social media. Including emotions in the analysis of this relationship allowed us to verify the importance of emotional framing, especially the negative one, as a generator of political engagement.
... The debate on the political function of social media is therefore still open, with many arguing that digital tools are rarely used in order to engage with political parties or electoral candidates and that their main 142 role is focused on the contribution to learning and to the building of communities, facilitating the participation and the engagement (Koc-Michalska & Lilleker, 2017), and even if we were to compare them with other types of participation such as protests and, above all, civic engagement (Boulianne, 2015), the relationship between the use of social media and participation in electoral campaigns is much weaker. However, social media have become an important arena of action, especially for organisations belonging to civil society, so that, besides mobilising efforts during electoral campaigns, mobilisation also occurs in other moments (Rosenstone & Hansen, 1993), resulting in a political participation more oriented towards civic engagement (Koc-Michalska & Lilleker, 2017). ...
... The debate on the political function of social media is therefore still open, with many arguing that digital tools are rarely used in order to engage with political parties or electoral candidates and that their main 142 role is focused on the contribution to learning and to the building of communities, facilitating the participation and the engagement (Koc-Michalska & Lilleker, 2017), and even if we were to compare them with other types of participation such as protests and, above all, civic engagement (Boulianne, 2015), the relationship between the use of social media and participation in electoral campaigns is much weaker. However, social media have become an important arena of action, especially for organisations belonging to civil society, so that, besides mobilising efforts during electoral campaigns, mobilisation also occurs in other moments (Rosenstone & Hansen, 1993), resulting in a political participation more oriented towards civic engagement (Koc-Michalska & Lilleker, 2017). ...
Chapter
Immersive storytelling has changed the way information is produced, distributed, and even consumed by viewers. Media, NGOs, and political parties have understood virtual reality technologies and 360-degree video as an opportunity to connect with users and deliver a closer and more immersive event experience. Regarding political communication, elections (campaigns, rallies, and debates) have been the most fertile ground for immersive storytelling. Using several cases as examples, this chapter addresses the opportunities immersive storytelling presents for institutional communication and public relations, as well as the ethical challenges posed by such content.
... Now, with the growing availability of new digital technologies, governments are increasingly inviting a growing number of citizens to participate in policy-making [3,62,90]. Digital citizen participation platforms have been used to foster digital mass participation at different policy levels, ranging from participatory budgeting and local and national law-making to constitution-making [10,42,44,48,79]. ...
... This does not necessarily mean that existing processes will be replaced, but they do open up new channels for participation that have the potential to significantly widen the range of citizens engaged in law-and policy-making. Further, digital mass participation also allows for more sustained citizen participation tools between election cycles [2], which means that citizens will be empowered, better informed, and more active in their political engagement [42,53]. ...
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The development of democratic systems is a crucial task as confirmed by its selection as one of the Millennium Sustainable Development Goals by the United Nations. In this article, we report on the progress of a project that aims to address barriers, one of which is information overload, to achieving effective direct citizen participation in democratic decision-making processes. The main objectives are to explore if the application of Natural Language Processing ( NLP ) and machine learning can improve citizens’ experience of digital citizen participation platforms. Taking as a case study the “Decide Madrid” Consul platform, which enables citizens to post proposals for policies they would like to see adopted by the city council, we used NLP and machine learning to provide new ways to (a) suggest to citizens proposals they might wish to support; (b) group citizens by interests so that they can more easily interact with each other; (c) summarise comments posted in response to proposals; and (d) assist citizens in aggregating and developing proposals. Evaluation of the results confirms that NLP and machine learning have a role to play in addressing some of the barriers users of platforms such as Consul currently experience. CCS concepts: • Human-centred computing→Collaborative and social computing • Computing methodologies→Artificial intelligence→Natural language processing
... Civic participation in policy rule-making and implementation offers many important benefits. For citizens, it serves as a crucial component of civic education and engagement and increases trust in governmental processes [4,60]. For policymakers, civic participation processes provide access to a broad range of experience-based knowledge at a low cost, enabling them to create better policy [4,6,9,65,85]. ...
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Natural language processing (NLP) tools have the potential to boost civic participation and enhance democratic processes because they can significantly increase governments' capacity to gather and analyze citizen opinions. However, their adoption in government remains limited, and harnessing their benefits while preventing unintended consequences remains a challenge. While prior work has focused on improving NLP performance, this work examines how different internal government stakeholders influence NLP tools' thoughtful adoption. We interviewed seven politicians (politically appointed officials as heads of government institutions) and thirteen public servants (career government employees who design and administrate policy interventions), inquiring how they choose whether and how to use NLP tools to support civic participation processes. The interviews suggest that policymakers across both groups focused on their needs for career advancement and the need to showcase the legitimacy and fairness of their work when considering NLP tool adoption and use. Because these needs vary between politicians and public servants, their preferred NLP features and tool designs also differ. Interestingly, despite their differing needs and opinions, neither group clearly identifies who should advocate for NLP adoption to enhance civic participation or address the unintended consequences of a poorly considered adoption. This lack of clarity in responsibility might have caused the governments' low adoption of NLP tools. We discuss how these findings reveal new insights for future HCI research. They inform the design of NLP tools for increasing civic participation efficiency and capacity, the design of other tools and methods that ensure thoughtful adoption of AI tools in government, and the design of NLP tools for collaborative use among users with different incentives and needs.
... The numerous advantages of the digital space support the increasing trend. These include its ability to enable wider political involvement, the creation of supporter networks, and the mobilisation of individuals in online and in-person campaign activities (Koc-Michalska and Lilleker 2017). Through the effective use of social media, Ubah Bareng integrated offline and online campaigns and successfully held Desak Anies and Slepet Imin in 36 locations across Indonesia (Ubah Bareng 2024), with the Desak Anies event in Surabaya drawing an attendance of 20,000 people, surpassing the 13,500 online registrants ( CNN Indonesia 2024). ...
Article
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This study examines the Ubah Bareng volunteer movement, a youth-driven initiative supporting Anies Baswedan-Muhaimin Iskandar (AMIN) in the 2024 Indonesia Presi- dential Election. While research on volunteer movements in electoral campaigns often focuses on their role as secondary forces under political party control, this study offers new ground by exploring Ubah Bareng’s position as a primary driver in AMIN’s natio- nal campaign. By applying Pippa Norris’s Campaign Communication Strategy Theory, this research investigates how Ubah Bareng collaborates with the official campaign team (Timnas) and political parties to mobilize young voters effectively. A qualitative methodology, including in-depth interviews and literature reviews, reveals that Ubah Bareng’s involvement in the official campaign is closely linked to its relationship with Anies Baswedan, Timnas, and political parties. Thus, Ubah Bareng is a platform that integrates volunteers, political parties, and Timnas in designing campaign programs. This relation allows Ubah Bareng to operate independently from the official campaign structure while playing a pivotal role in developing and executing campaign strategies. This study further identifies Ubah Bareng’s mixed use of pre-modern and post-modern campaigns as its primary strategy. At the same time, its hub model represents a new phenomenon that can prevent fragmentation within electoral volunteer movements. Therefore, this study contributes to the broader understanding of volunteer move- ments in Indonesian politics, offering insights into their evolving role as central actors in electoral campaign strategy.
... Participation can also generate collective learning and increase the likelihood of delivering more legitimate and effective policies [18,9]. The latter improves democratic institutions over the long term by enhancing the process's inclusiveness, transparency, and accountability [17,19]. ...
Conference Paper
For policymakers, making sense of stakeholder participatory data is a complex task. Natural Language Processing (NLP) can aid in processing this data, reducing policymakers’ cognitive overload and supporting multi-stakeholder engagement. However, implementing NLP can be challenging in settings with limited resources, knowledge, or infrastructure. This study analyzes the feasibility and limitations of using Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) to examine data from Chile’s AI policy in which more than 1,700 people participated in a public deliberation process yielding data containing citizen reflections that varied in format, quality, depth, and length. We matched LDA topics from the public deliberation data to the objectives of Chile’s AI policy draft, written by five experts over 4-months. LDA effectively detected 87% of the topics in the draft, requiring the researchers only to manually inspect 26% of the participation data to deliver this result. We discuss the potential and limitations of using LDA in participatory processes and contribute by showing how it can aid in the strategic management of stakeholders in a real-world resource-constrained setting. Full paper: https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-3737/paper30.pdf
... Digital technologies, especially those that enable social interaction, can create new avenues for political engagement. Online interactions can influence voting behaviour, participation in political movements, and even the motivations behind different forms of participation in many ways (Koc-Michalska and Lilleker 2017;Theocharis et al. 2023). Take social media, for example; it has empowered citizens to launch and organise boycott campaigns against political figures or policies with unprecedented ease. ...
Article
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This chapter explores the influence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on digital democracy, focusing on four main areas: citizenship, participation, representation, and the public sphere. It traces the evolution from electronic to virtual and network democracy, underscoring how each stage has broadened democratic engagement through technology. Focusing on digital citizenship, the chapter examines how AI can improve online engagement while posing privacy risks and fostering identity stereotyping. Regarding political participation, it highlights AI's dual role in mobilising civic actions and spreading misinformation. Regarding representation, AI's involvement in electoral processes can enhance voter registration, e-voting, and the efficiency of result tabulation but raises concerns regarding privacy and public trust. Also, AI's predictive capabilities shift the dynamics of political competition, posing ethical questions about manipulation and the legitimacy of democracy. Finally, the chapter examines how integrating AI and digital technologies can facilitate democratic political advocacy and personalised communication. However, this also comes with higher risks of misinformation and targeted propaganda.
... Social participation in the context of digital engagement refers to the extent to which individuals partake in online activities that contribute to public discourse, policy-making, and community development [58,59]. This participatory culture is conducive to enhancing an individual's awareness of digital transformation, as it involves leveraging digital tools to affect social change and participate in civic activities [60]. ...
Article
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In an era marked by rapid digital transformation, understanding the factors that influence digital engagement is crucial for bridging the digital divide. This study aims to explore the impact of individual factors such as networking motive, social media use, content service usage, and economic activity on digital transformation awareness and satisfaction. Utilizing Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to analyze data from 7,000 respondents of the National Information Society Agency (NIA)'s 2022 Digital Divide Survey, this research provides empirical insights into the dynamics of digital engagement. The findings reveal that networking motive significantly predicts social media use, which in turn slightly enhances digital transformation awareness but not satisfaction. Conversely, economic activity positively influences both awareness and satisfaction with digital transformation, underscoring the tangible benefits of digital economic engagement. Life service utilization emerged as a crucial factor, significantly impacting both awareness and satisfaction. These results offer critical implications for policymakers, educators, and digital platform developers, suggesting the need for targeted strategies to enhance digital literacy, promote inclusive digital services, and foster economic opportunities in the digital domain.
... Digital technologies, especially those that enable social interaction, can create new avenues for political engagement. Online interactions can influence voting behaviour, participation in political movements, and even the motivations behind different forms of participation in many ways (Koc-Michalska and Lilleker 2017;Theocharis et al. 2023). Take social media, for example; it has empowered citizens to launch and organise boycott campaigns against political figures or policies with unprecedented ease. ...
Preprint
Full-text available
This chapter explores the influence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on digital democracy, focusing on four main areas: citizenship, participation, representation, and the public sphere. It traces the evolution from electronic to virtual and network democracy, underscoring how each stage has broadened democratic engagement through technology. Focusing on digital citizenship, the chapter examines how AI can improve online engagement while posing privacy risks and fostering identity stereotyping. Regarding political participation, it highlights AI's dual role in mobilising civic actions and spreading misinformation. Regarding representation, AI's involvement in electoral processes can enhance voter registration, e-voting, and the efficiency of result tabulation but raises concerns regarding privacy and public trust. Also, AI's predictive capabilities shift the dynamics of political competition, posing ethical questions about manipulation and the legitimacy of democracy. Finally, the chapter examines how integrating AI and digital technologies can facilitate democratic political advocacy and personalised communication. However, this also comes with higher risks of misinformation and targeted propaganda.
... Furthermore, empirical studies have shown, the media has extensive influence on people's propensity to contribute in political discussions (Strömbäck, Falasca, & Kruikemeier, 2018). The contemporary landscape of political involvement necessitates the use of digital tools since it can no longer be confined only to traditional, labor-intensive offline activities (Lilleker & Koc-Michalska, 2017). The mechanisms via which political engagement occurs in online deliberative environments, in light of the rise and popularity in social media platforms (Friess & Eilders, 2015). ...
Article
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The field of visual communication suggests that the use of imaginative visuals like images, videos, and graphics might potentially influence the perceptions and attitudes of the general public including teenagers. These teenagers have access to social media platforms and spend most of their time watching short videos. The present study aimed to investigate the impact of political short videos on political information and participation of teenagers. A quantitative survey research methodology approach is used with a sample size of (N = 250) Teens. Major findings of the study proved that exposure to short videos in the form of TikTok Videos, YouTube Shorts, Facebook, and Instagram Reels is one of the major sources of information for teens and political information and political participation of teens. These teenagers are very aware of political data and information which helps them actively participate in political activities, and discussions. The government and educational institutions may develop a strategy to help teenagers better understand the political system, which will encourage the positive use of social media.
... In its early days, the main comparative studies were limited to analysing the digital transformation of party management, top-down internal communication and political campaigning ). Since then, the digitalisation of political campaigns has attracted most of the attention (Dommett et al., 2024;Koc-Michalska & Lilleker, 2017). Much of this literature has examined the relevance of new digital tools in the electoral process and the role of social media in mobilising the electorate (Kreiss, 2016;Owen, 2017). ...
... Online and offline political participation appear intrinsically linked (Koivula, Malinen, and Saarinen 2021;Theocharis et al. 2022). While online activism is often criticised for its superficiality compared to offline engagement, Koc-Michalska and Lilleker (2017) counter that given the right circumstances, it can be equally influential and even replace offline involvement. Intriguingly, intrinsic motivations are more likely to drive offline than online participation. ...
... In this special issue, we aim to unpack the multifaceted domain of "EU digital policies and politics" and the new challenges they pose to European regulators. To define EU digital policies and politics, we depart from a conventional approach that primarily examines the online behaviours of political actors (for example Koc-Michalska and Lilleker, 2017), embracing a perspective that analyses the dynamics between actors and policies regulating the digital realm. ...
... This social practice can be defined as "confirmation bias" in which individuals are attracted to spaces where their pre-existing political beliefs, knowledge, and decisions are reaffirmed rather than challenged, thereby diminishing any opportunities to be exposed to diverse perspectives (Dutton et al., 2017). As a result, users are often exposed to politics in the new information environment, but in most cases, this exposure may be limited to sources that align with their beliefs and ideologies (Koc-Michalska & Lilleker, 2017). Kümpel (2020) highlights the ways in which individuals may also experience inequalities in their news exposure and engagement opportunities as a result of the manipulative technologies that are present within social media platforms. ...
Chapter
We analyse the perceptions of secondary school students in Germany regarding “fake news” (FN). First, we describe students’ awareness of the nature, frequency, and thematic scope of FN. Then, we look at students’ willingness to learn about FN, the mechanisms underlying it, and how they envision the integration of FN in the curriculum. We claim that effective pedagogies to develop students’ critical awareness about this phenomenon should be grounded in their lived experiences, in what we will call a situated and responsive pedagogy. Two elements are central for this pedagogy: first, bringing together student and teacher communities at school, as teachers are recognised by students as their most competent partners; second, combining top-down and bottom-up curriculum design and school development to allow student participation. Situated and responsive pedagogy offers the possibility of combining students’ digital and school lives, potentially creating maximal affective engagement in teaching and learning situations.KeywordsMisinformationFake newsStudents’ perspectivesSituatedResponsive pedagogy
... To learn about the technological engagement of authoritarian domination, scholars often choose citizens or organizations as the unit of analysis to see how their activities are interrupted by tech-driven control practices (Han, 2018;Liu and Graham, 2021;Smeltzer, 2012). Although the impact of technology on civil society is an important topic in the study of tech-driven authoritarianism (Diamond, 2010;Farrell, 2012;Koc-Michalska and Lilleker, 2017;Schlaeger and Jiang, 2014), when data are produced from the side of civil society, scholars are answering questions about how civil society is impacted by digital technologies rather than questions about how the state is using technology to govern the people. What remains unclear is the motives of the concrete actors and the mechanisms underpinning the authoritarian regimes' use of the internet, big data, social media, AI, and other digital technologies. ...
Article
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With the tremendous advancements in Internet, big data analytics, and artificial intelligence , the power and potential of digital technologies has a special appeal to political rulers. How can qualitative researchers explore tech-driven authoritarianism when they have limited access to state institutions? This article addresses this question by arguing for a wider and more nuanced understanding of tech-driven authoritarianism as a state-market complex mediating the political application of digital technologies. Based on my own research on China's Internet surveillance, I find that the engagement of the private sector, especially technology companies, in authoritarian control creates new opportunities for qualitative researchers to study state power in non-state fields. By reflecting on my experience of field-site choice, gaining access, and informant recruitment, I discuss how thorough preparation in both theory and fieldwork approaches help qualitative investigators develop creative ways of collecting information on tech-driven authoritarianism.
... Thus, brands help the voters connect with the political brand at a functional and emotional level.The contribution of this work lies in its unique integration of the PMO framework with political brand affecting VO, advancing the understanding of voters' perception of political parties and campaign managers. The research provides valuable insight regarding the degree to which voter perception is affected by VE, political brands and political party's disposition towards prevailing 'EF'.Dermody et al. (2010) reveal that "young people are the most disengaged and often feel alienated with politics"; hence, our study tries to find a mechanism to address this through institutionalising VE across digital platforms, which can enhance political interest(Koc-Michalska & Lilleker, 2017).Studies of political engagement do reveal holistic insight into young voters' while they consider engagement across multiple marketing campaigns and channels, offline and online. Social media has evolved as the most popular platform for engaging political discussions(Pich et al., 2018). ...
Article
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Political parties in order to design their competitive strategies are always keen to understand the factors that govern voter's perception. Voter's perception in this paper utilizes voter's acknowledgement of voter orientation (VO) of political parties. The purpose of this paper is to examine the constituent variables and their cumulative impact on voter's orientation and examine the linkage that exists between them. The authors have proposed four key constructs that demonstrates causality namely voter involvement (VI), voter subjective knowledge (VSK), political brand image (PBI) and environmental factor (EF). The study has used SEM method of model estimation. VI and VSK merged into a new construct labelled as voter engagement (VE). Engaged voter would impact PBI positively and political brand impacts VO. The relationship of VE and VO is mediated PBI, but the same kind of mediation is not witnessed in the case of EF. This research advances the understanding of composite variables of VO from the vantage of political market orientation. Political brand mediates the association between VE and voter perception.
... However, there are good reasons to examine multiple organizing contexts in the context of digital collective action efforts. Digital participation in collective action does not occur in a vacuum; rather, a wide variety of organizational and social contexts, from formal organizations to loose coalitions and individual networks, play a significant role in prompting participation and motivating individuals to join collective action efforts (Koc-Michalska & Lilleker, 2016). It is no longer tenable to make sharp distinctions between online and offline forms of collective action (e.g., Brunsting & Postmes, 2002) nor rigidly bifurcate organizational and self-organizing actions. ...
Article
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The contemporary communication landscape enables individuals to connect and engage with collective action efforts in multifaceted and ambiguous ways. This complexity makes membership in collective action groups particularly intriguing and important because of its pivotal role as a mechanism that connects individual behavior to group, organizational, and societal dynamics. This study seeks to examine the spread of membership types in the digital environment and explores how different kinds of prompts for collective action are associated with particular types of membership groups. Through a survey of participants on a popular global digital platform for collective decision-making, we found evidence of a broad range of membership types in the digital space, associated with particular prompts calling for action. The results suggest that there is a strong relationship between membership type and participatory styles of individuals. Implications of the results are discussed.
... While these public participation workshops were highly attended, ongoing opportunities to continue to participate are limited, and in some cases non-existent, following code adoption within each context. While there are increasing levels of new technologies including social media, which offer additional forums, research has shown that these are limited in terms of audience participation, endorsements indicated by "liking", or by presenting an opportunity to dissent as activists (Koc-Michalska & Lilleker, 2017). ...
Chapter
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Inequality can be reduced through greater political participation, and reduced inequality often results in increased economic growth (Solt, 2008). This research begins with the examination of the City of Miami, Florida and the City of Denver, Colorado as case studies as part of a Qualitative and Mixed Methods Research Design to consider how inclusion, economic growth, and inequality are affected by these processes. The aim is to consider the quality of participatory methods and analyses while exploring the need for ongoing participation. Externalities such as changing property values are considered as a factor in evaluating inequality to more holistically analyze processes and outcomes. The research objectives include measuring and analyzing how a multi-faceted research design with the use of visual communication within public planning processes can further economic growth, while advancing inclusion and levels of collaboration within local government public planning participation processes in the United States. To maximize the impact of this study and to uncover reflexive benefits, the need for further research of local contexts internationally has been uncovered. This will serve as a test in achieving maximum, true diversity and the highest and best returns in terms of economic growth through the reduction of inequality. As such, this study acknowledges the need to continue to replicate this research domestically and internationally for comparative purposes to ensure the opportunity for maximum collaboration and the most thorough investigation and findings into the achievement of economic growth through the reduction of inequality.
... With the advent of social media, such premises have expanded in complex ways (Jost et al., 2018). Democratized access to websites like Facebook and Twitter allows the public to express personal opinions, amass social influence, and possibly spur real-world action at an unprecedented scale (Koc-Michalska & Lilleker, 2017). ...
Article
This article analyzes collective emotions toward political change in a populist democracy. Taking the federalization of the Philippines led by President Rodrigo Duterte as an exemplar case, we extend prevailing scholarship which focuses on populist leaders' electoral discourse by examining the affective landscape of the populist public in a postelectoral context. Utilizing a sequential mixed‐methods design, we algorithmically classify the stance and sentiment valence of 18,535 Facebook comments about federalism, then we reflexively identify collective emotions based on major discursive storylines across each stance‐sentiment intersection. Our integrated analysis reveals collective feelings of (1) hope and euphoria and (2) vindictive contempt among supporters of Duterte's federalism, while detractors of the campaign express (3) derisive amusement and (4) fear and skepticism. Two of these public emotions may be idiosyncratic to Global South populisms: public fear and president‐invested salvific hope. We discuss the implications of our findings along themes of emotional polarization in a populist democracy, linking political affect with democratic participation through social media.
... Also, although SNSs have been praised for facilitating social movements, as evidenced by the socalled Facebook Revolution or Twitter Revolution, specifically how or whether the emergence of SNSs has expanded the web-based Internet's impacts on protest mobilization has yet to be fully examined. Koc-Michalska and Lilleker (2017) argued for the need for future research on "how and under what conditions citizens are politically activated through their use of social media" (p. 4). ...
Article
Background: With the rapid expansion of the energy drink market, concerns associated with its adverse effects have been raised. This research examines how goal framing moderated by temporal framing affects attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control related to energy drink consumption. Methods: A 2 (goal framing: gain vs. loss) × 2 (temporal framing: present-oriented vs. future-oriented) randomised experiment was employed. The sample consisted of 195 college students who consume energy drinks. Results: Results showed that a future-oriented message was more effective than a present-oriented one when used in gain framing in increasing perceived behavioral control, as predicted. A future-oriented message was also more effective in increasing perceived negative subjective norms, but only when used in loss framing; this was the opposite of the predicted result. Conclusions: The findings extend previous research on goal framing by (1) identifying an important moderator-temporal framing-in processing health promotion messages about energy drink consumption and (2) examining such moderated effects on different psychological factors. The findings of this study are expected to inform the development of more effective message strategies in health domains.
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There is a growing body of literature on the use and selection of social media platforms for political activism. However, less attention has been given to identifying citizens who are politically disconnected—those registered on social media platforms but not engaging in political activities. Additionally, whether patterns of non-use of social media for politics vary across different platforms remains understudied. Based on an online survey of 1,978 respondents conducted after the 2022 French presidential election campaign, this article aims to address these questions by examining the patterns and factors contributing to political disconnection from social media, particularly across six platforms: Facebook, private social networks, Instagram, Snapchat, X (formerly Twitter), and TikTok. Our findings indicate that three main factors explain political disconnection: digital skills, interest in politics (except for platforms less frequently used for politics), and social media efficacy. These results provide significant and original contributions to the broader debate on how and why individuals disconnect socially and technologically on social media platforms. While many studies focus on the variables that account for political participation in the age of social media, ours examines the conditions that explain non-use in the context of political disconnection. We also contribute to the existing literature by analysing the phenomenon of non-use holistically, addressing platform type, demographics, digital literacy, and political traits (e.g., interest and competence).
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Several governments are leveraging social media for political communication. While the phenomenon of gate-keeping in filtering information through social media has received attention from scholars, the role of diverse meso-entities (comprising pressure groups, experts, and professionals) in influencing digital political communication remains under-studied. We explore the trend in communicating a specific program for electoral gains and identify different types of entities that reshape and disseminate political communication on Twitter, with an illustration of the launch of the public health insurance program in India. We find the significant presence of meso-level entities that played an instrumental role in influencing political communication from macro to microlevel entities through the digital platform. We extend the Jungherr, Schoen, and Jürgens (2016) framework of macro to micro-level political communication in social media by recommending a few propositions to be tested in future studies. Further, this study also contributes to information diffusion theory by explicating the role of various information intermediaries in influencing information flow from macro to micro users on social media platforms.
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The contributions of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and social media to the climate crisis are often underestimated. To date, much of the focus has been on direct emissions associated with the life cycle of tech products. In this forum article, we argue that this narrow focus misses the adverse and indirect impacts of generative AI and social media on the climate. We outline some of the indirect ways in which generative AI and social media undermine the optimism, focus, creativity, and veracity required to address the climate crisis. Our aim is twofold. First, we seek to balance the tide of optimism about the role of digitalization in addressing the climate crisis by offering a skeptic’s perspective. Second, we outline a new research agenda that moves beyond counting directly attributable carbon emissions and proposes a more comprehensive accounting of the indirect ways in which social media and generative AI adversely impact the sociopolitical conditions required to address the climate crisis.
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In response to new pedagogical challenges brought forth by the post-truth era, this chapter contextualizes what we call the new information environment with attention to various elements that compose this environment, including information abundance, misinformation, disinformation, and the impacts of manipulative hidden technologies that shape individuals’ attitudes and behaviours. Drawing upon Dewey and Mouffe, this chapter discusses the conflictual nature of democratic engagement, and examines existing threats to democracy that the new information environment poses. We identify the implications of young people's access to seemingly limitless information as citizens in a democratic society, and illuminate the role of education in responding to these challenges. In our final section, we intersect empirical findings from our case study of high school students and teachers with contemporary literature to highlight the material impacts of mis- and disinformation. We conclude with a call for pedagogical action.
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The use of mobile instant messaging services is increasing among citizens. Applications like WhatsApp, with more than 2 billion users around the world, have changed the way we communicate. The objective of this research is to know how citizens make use of the WhatsApp service launched by the town hall of their municipality of residence. To do so, an online survey was carried out on 1202 citizens residing in Spain. The sample has been stratified considering the size of the municipality of residence of the respondents. The results show that the City Council’s WhatsApp service has greater penetration in smaller municipalities (up to 10,000 inhabitants). Therefore, these citizens would show more serious concern for local politics than the rest. Regarding its use, it stands out how residents in small municipalities use it more for informational purposes, while residents in medium municipalities (from 10,001 to 100,000 inhabitants) and large municipalities (more than 100,001 inhabitants) participate more and use it more frequently to register for the services offered by the City Council, as well as to raise doubts about the management run by the municipal corporation.
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Las imágenes, la personalización y la polarización son rasgos nucleares de la ciberdemocracia. Teniendo en cuenta dicho contexto, el presente artículo analiza la comunicación visual de los candidatos estadounidenses Joe Biden y Donald Trump en la campaña presidencial de 2020. A través de un análisis cuantitativo y comparado de sus cuentas de Instagram, se alcanzaron las siguientes conclusiones: los atributos individuales del líder son más gravitantes que las propiedades de su fuerza política, la categoría política/profesional es la que prevalece en la mayoría de las publicaciones, la producción de piezas negativas y el recurso de yuxtaposición son preponderantes en ambos aspirantes y, por último, es relevante la producción de fotos y vídeos donde la figura política representa la totalidad del mensaje.
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Scholars of critical algorithmic studies, including those from geography, anthropology, science talent search, and communication studies, have begun to consider how algorithmic devices and platforms facilitate democratic practices. In this article, I draw on a comparative ethnography of two alternative open-source algorithmic platforms – Decide Madrid and vTaiwan – to consider how they are dynamically constituted by differing algorithmic–human relationships. I compare how different algorithmic–human relationships empower citizens to influence political decision-making through proposing, commenting, and voting on the urban issues that should receive political resources in Taipei and Madrid. I argue that algorithmic empowerment is an emerging process in which algorithmic–human relationships orient away from limitations and towards conditions of plurality, actionality, and power decentralisation. This argument frames algorithmic empowerment as bringing about empowering conditions that allow (underrepresented) individuals to shape policy-making and consider plural perspectives for political change and action, not as an outcome-driven, binary assessment (i.e. yes/no). This article contributes a novel, situated, and comparative conceptualisation of algorithmic empowerment that moves beyond technological determinism and universalism.
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Проаналізовано, що процес цифровізаціі має об’єктивний характер, залежить від глобалізаційних процесів. Однак цьому процесу, як і політичним, так і ринковим відносинам загалом, властиві певні особливості, вади і провали ринку, що потребують державного регулювання та втручання. В більшості країн сучасного світу одним з пріоритетних стратегічних завдань та загальнонаціональних пріоритетів розглядається впровадження інформаційно- комунікаційних технологій (ІКТ) та розвиток елементів цифрового суспільства. Цифрові технології, а також пов’язана з ними громадська та людська діяльність утворюють цифрову сферу сучасного соціуму, яка в нинішніх умовах визначає економічний та інноваційний потенціал держави, рівень освіти та людського розвитку, обумовлює соціальний прогрес, ефективність державного управління та здійснення демократичних процедур. Розвиток принципів цифрового суспільства стимулює вдосконалення способів і методів взаємодії в рамках соціально-економічних відносин. Застосування інформаційних технологій дозволяє розширювати комунікаційні процеси, змінює склад і статус їх учасників, принципи просторової взаємодії шляхом мережевого спілкування, підвищує децентралізацію прийняття управлінських рішень в державному і приватному секторі. На основі аналізу сучасних теоретичних моделей можливо окреслити модель цифрової політики. Елементами моделі є цифрове поле, що впливає на використання певних способів взаємодії цифрових політичних суб’єктів із цифровою інфраструктурою; цифрова інфраструктура – низка технологій/інструментів для інтеграції мереж; мережі користувачів – спільноти громадян, що опановують та застосовують цифрові технології/інструменти для досягнення спільних цілей, самоврядування; цифрові політичні суб’єкти, що інтегрують ці мережі для здійснення політики Отже, в світі склалася нова реальність, яка спонукає уряди всіх країн до проведення політики системної цифрової економіки за допомогою цифрової трансформації шляхом вдосконалення відповідних галузей національного законодавства, розробки та реалізації масштабних державних стратегій, проектів та програм, зокрема – повне переведення сфери публічного управління на цифрові технології. Здійснено комплексне дослідження цифрової політики як нового феномена політичного процесу в сучасному світі, що виникає під впливом глобальної цифровізації. Виявлено, що цифровізація політики є валентним, нестійким, незавершеним процесом, що можна пояснити самою природою глобальної цифровізації, що постійно самовдосконалюється та самооновлюється. Це позначається і на принципах формування цифрових політичних суб’єктів, які постійно удосконалюють свій інструментарій через утворення усе більш масштабних спільнот. Тож баланс сил у цифровому світі залежить від миттєвої інтеграції цих спільнот тими або іншими цифровими політичними суб’єктами. Цифровізацію державної політики описано як постійну модифікацію цифрової інфраструктури політичного процесу. Встановлено категорії для вивчення цифровізації політики з метою виявлення її впливу на дискурс сучасності: «цифрова політика», «цифрові політичні суб’єкти». Визначені фактори, що впливають на процес цифровізаціі державної політики в зарубіжних країнах. Запропоновано модель цифрової політики, яка дозволяє визначити зміст та принципи трансформації політики держави у цифровому середовищі, зокрема: 1) процедуру утворення нового типу політичного актора – цифрового політичного суб’єкта; 2) створення умов для утворення мереж різних типів для здійснення політики у межах цифрових політичних практик, 3) методи використання цифрової інфраструктури для здійснення політики, 4) принципи продукування нового типу політичного контенту, що змінює структуру та формати політичних текстів.
Article
Political campaigning in Assam and the Northeast region is distinctive in India’s hybrid media system. This study discusses parties and political campaigning in Assam’s hybrid media environment in the 2019 Lok Sabha and 2021 Legislative Assembly elections. The history of the state, party system development, and the media landscape precedes a discussion of the 2019 campaign drawing on interviews with party strategiests and television journalists. Although Facebook, Twitter and Instagram were on the rise as important campaign tools in Assam and the Northeast region in 2019, traditional political advertising (posters, pamphlets), coverage of political issues in traditional media (print and television news), as well as face-to-face communication (public meetings, door-to-door canvassing and rallies) remained the most important sources of political communication between voters and parties due to substantially lower teledensity than the national average. We explore how political parties used a mix of ‘advanced’ and ‘traditional’ campaigning tools to mobilize voters to support party agendas during the 2019 Lok Sabha election and the 2021 Legislative Assembly election campaign.
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The digitalisation of political communication has played a crucial role in campaigns on both national and regional levels. For many political candidates in Poland, Facebook has become the primary tool for building a successful campaign. However, campaigns for elections to regional government bodies are often associated with traditional offline media, outdoor advertising and ubiquitous leaflets. The aim of this paper is to contribute to our knowledge of electoral communications in Poland from the regional perspective. Data gathered during the 2018 online campaign for the Lower Silesian Regional Assembly examined through a semiautomated content analysis uncovered the dynamics of the professionalisation of Polish political communication and identified predictors of Facebook adoption for electoral purposes among regional candidates. Furthermore, focusing solely on Facebook data, research revealed a tendency toward the normalisation of social media campaigning and a propensity for using mobilisation communication strategies. Taken together, this paper provides new insights into the study of political campaigning in Central and Eastern Europe on social media from the perspective of political actor.
Article
A noteworthy limitation among existing studies on the use of online technologies by political parties is the focus on elections. This study extends the frontiers by examining the extent to which Nigeria's political parties use their websites, as well as Facebook and Twitter platforms to communicate and mobilise citizens during and beyond elections. Using web assessment survey, data collected from the online platforms of registered political parties in February 2015 and February 2017 were analysed—to see trends in online activities during (2015 elections) and outside of elections (2017). The study reveals that the parties are caught in the web of the contradictory possibilities of digital engagement. On the one hand, is an online quiescence in the period between elections, which is premised on poor party institutionalisation. On the other hand, the parties are largely unable to reverse elements of institutionalisation challenges by leveraging digital tools to develop roots in the society and boost their public image. This quandary helps to demonstrate where the Nigerian party system fits in the equalisation versus normalisation debate on the utility of digital tools.
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This chapter outlines the main dimensions of analysis for assessing how mainstream and new parties are building their digital platforms and transitioning from traditional (offline) organisations into the digital world. So far, most of the academic attention has been focused on the impact of the use of digital technologies on party competition and campaigning, while the intra-organisational dimensions have been significantly under-researched. However, several parties in Europe and around the world, both traditional and digital native, have increasingly used digital technologies such as online platforms for internal decision-making, funding, communication and membership mobilisation. We provide here an innovative analytical framework for empirical exploration of the democratic consequences and technical challenges raised by the digitalization of party organisations from a comparative perspective.
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Over the past decades, digital technologies have developed into tools of political deliberation and decision-making by the state and parties alike (Chadwick, 2007, 2012; Koc-Michalska & Lilleker, 2016). However, while some states developed strict rules on how to regulate and govern the use of internet devices in electoral affairs, online voting or referendums, it is not clear to what extent such regulations also exist to govern online decisions within political parties. In order to address these questions, the chapter bridges previous literature on digital politics, state electoral regulation and party organisations. The chapter explores how e-decision-making (mainly i-voting) is regulated in a sample of digitalized parties in two European countries (Italy and Spain) and to what extent these respect democratic norms and incorporate technical aspects. The chapter concludes with a discussion on how national-level regulations can be transferred into the intra-party context and what lessons can be learned from the discussed case studies to facilitate successful introduction of e-decision-making.
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The establishment and constant development of social media technologies over the last two decades have left media scholars with a burning desire to understand their contribution to the formation of public opinion and its political consequences. At this very moment it is undeniable that public opinion fuelled by social media is a force to be reckoned with. At the same time, the complex information flows and communication practices on social media make it difficult to predict how public opinion will form. Research into how information and opinions are shared has created concerns that some parts of the public are becoming increasingly politically homogenous and polarized due to social media. This thesis project suggests a new framework to evaluate the function of public opinion, specifically in relation to the opportunities offered by social media. The framework is inclusive and conflates concepts that are usually considered separate within the field of media studies e.g. opinion polling and deliberation. It is a descriptive framework that highlights advantages and weaknesses for certain instances of public opinion. The framework is used to inform the development of computational methods that can be used to gauge public opinion with respect to political homophily and polarization. These methods rely on automatically calculating the cross-cutting agreement, i.e. how much agreement there is between people with opposing political affiliations, as they interact in public social media discussions. They are developed as universal methods to enable public opinion to be measured based on how politically homogenous the users who react to and share a piece of information are and how well political oppositions in the comment threads are able to reach agreement, in combination with topics and sentiments. The methods are tested on a large cross-section of public Danish Facebook pages related to everything from local fitness clubs to government pages and news media organization. Results show that high levels of political homophily and disagreement that are likely to cause polarization are highly dependent on context. Overall polarization does not appear to be increasing over a period of five years, except if moderated by certain other factors of which discussion topics related to refugees and immigration is one of the strongest. The results are furthermore an indicator that the methods developed can be used to effectively evaluate public opinion with respect to homophily and polarization. Since the methods are computational, the process is easily automated and can be used to create 3 tools that can deliver increased transparency in public opinion formation as it unfolds on social media platforms.
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У роботі доводиться, що трактування цифрової політики тільки як такої, що використовує цифрові технології, є неповним і на цьому етапі цифровізації не дає змоги типологізувати держави з різними системами ухвалення рішень. На основі аналізу останніх досліджень виокремлюються складники цифровізації, що надалі дадуть змогу укласти таку типологію. Цими складниками є наявність дієвого цифрового форуму, що є основою цифрової демократії, активних горизонтальних шляхів для політичної взаємодії, можливості для політичних акторів здобувати цифровий капітал внаслідок інтенсивної взаємодії в межах цифрового форуму. Важливою є і наявність цифрових активістів, включення яких до цифрового форуму має відбуватися за допомогою цифрового ресурсу політичних еліт або ж інших політичних акторів. Знайдено низку перепон для функціонування цифрового форуму, внаслідок яких утворюється цифровий розрив і здобуття цифрового капіталу стає проблематичним.На основі виокремлених складників цифровізації політики створено ідеальну модель цифрового поля політики, в межах якої розроблено взаємозв’язки між складниками. Зокрема, визначено, що для ідеальної моделі важливою є циклічна структура цифрових можливостей, в якій ключовою ланкою є спроможність політичних акторів досягати успіху внаслідок використання цифрових технологій, що своєю чергою призводить до постійної модернізації наявного цифрового інструментарію, який використовується в політичній боротьбі. Використання цієї структури залежить від цифрового поля політики конкретної держави, і, якщо поле передбачає саме циклічний її формат, це зумовлює існування активного цифрового форуму, в якому експлікована низка політичних акторів, що, взаємодіючи один з одним, накопичують цифровий капітал.Зіставляючи цифрове поле конкретної держави з ідеальною моделлю, можна визначити його особливості, а отже, виокремлювати ті держави, які використовують цифрові технології не для демократизації, сприяння відкритості, залучення громадян до процесів ухвалення рішень, а для посилення репресій, маніпулювання громадською думкою, імітування політичних процесів.
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This article provides insights into the driving forces that underpin new forms of political participation. Digital technologies offer opportunities for engaging in a wide range of civically oriented activities, each of which can contribute to deeper democratic engagement. Conventional acts of political participation are argued to be driven primarily by intrinsic motivations relating to self-efficacy and empowerment, with participants feeling they can have influence over decision makers. Little research explores whether similar motivations drive participation in less conventional acts, as well as whether mobilization attempts via social media by peers or political organizations mediate those motivations. Drawing on data from a survey among a representative sample of the U.K. electorate, we find the offline and online spheres of agency remain fairly distinct. Intrinsic and extrinsic motivations both matter but extrinsic motivations have the strongest explanatory power independent of the sphere of activity. The mediating effect of mobilization tactics has a minimal effect on extrinsic motivations, online or offline, but online intrinsic motivations lose their explanatory power. As intrinsic factors offer little explanatory power, some forms of online political participation may lack meaning to the individual. Rather, these non-conventional acts result from reward seeking and are more likely to be encouraged by nongovernmental campaigning organizations, suggesting social media users are most likely to perform simple acts in support of non-contentious causes.
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This study analyzes the relationship between online voter mobilization and political engagement in Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom during the 2014 European election campaign. Internet surveys of samples representatives of these countries’ populations with Internet access show that respondents who received an invitation to vote for a party or candidate via e-mail or social media engaged in a significantly higher number of political activities than those who did not. Moreover, the relationship between mobilization and engagement was stronger among those who followed the campaign less attentively, as well as in countries where overall levels of engagement with the campaign were lower (Germany and the United Kingdom) than where they were higher (Italy). These findings indicate that online mobilization may contribute to closing gaps in political engagement at both individual and aggregate levels, and thus suggest that digital media may contribute to reviving democratic citizenship.
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As membership levels decline, parties are developing new forms of linkage with supporters, many of which rely on Internet technologies. To date, the discussion of these new modes of affiliation has been largely theoretical in nature, with little, if any, systematic empirical analysis undertaken on their appeal and impact on formal membership. This article seeks to fill this gap by examining the presence of three new types of digital affiliation—audience, friends, and digital activists—among the French electorate using original survey data from the 2012 Presidential election. Our findings are important in showing that while the new methods of affiliation are increasing parties’ reach into society, they are not necessarily widening parties’ socioeconomic support base. Furthermore, digital activism is mostly a supplementary channel for members’ input although there are a smaller group of people engaging in these activities that avoid formal membership ties. Such results suggest that digital methods of affiliation might offer an important new resource to parties during campaigns.
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This article examines the role of social media in contemporary political communication, focusing on Barack Obama’s Facebook campaign in the run-up to the 2012 presidential election. Although there is a growing body of literature on online forms of participation, little research exists on the role of social buttons on Facebook (like, comment, and share) as tools of political voice. We use these native interactive features as indicators of how citizens engage with particular political messages. A content analysis of posts published on Obama’s official Facebook page over the two months leading up to Election Day was conducted, along with a detailed measurement of all user interactions for each post. Our analysis indicates that the Obama campaign used Facebook as a tool of top-down promotion, focusing on Obama’s personality and as a means of strategically guiding followers to act, rather than as a means of bottom-up empowerment or hybridized coproduction. However, we also found that followers engaged selectively with campaign messages and often interacted more with policy-oriented posts than with promotional ones.
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This article explores whether use of the Internet changes the role that political motivation has traditionally played in classic explanations of participation. We ask if, by reducing so dramatically the costs of political participation, the Internet causes interest in politics to lose importance as a causal factor of participation. We examine this issue analysing a representative survey of the Spanish population which deals with political participation and Internet use. The results show that use of Internet has a direct effect on participation independently of motivation, and that, in order to participate online, skilled Internet users do not need to be motivated or interested in politics.
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While the study of e-participation has gained increasing attention within political science, our understanding of its underlying structure and relationship to offline participation is limited. This article addresses these gaps by focusing on three interrelated questions: (1) Is e-participation a multidimensional phenomenon (differentiation hypothesis)? (2) If submodes exist, do they mirror existing modes of participation (replication hypothesis)? (3) If offline forms are replicated online, do they mix together (integration hypothesis) or operate in separate spheres (independence hypothesis)? We test our hypotheses through confirmatory factor analysis of original survey data from the U.K. General Election of 2010. The results show that distinct submodes of e-participation, comparable to those occurring offline, can be identified. Support for integration and independence varies according to the type of participation undertaken. Finally our results suggest that the online environment may be fostering a new social-media-based type of expressive political behavior.
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This study used an online panel of Internet users to examine the degree to which blog users practice selective exposure when seeking political information. The research employed a path analysis model to explore the extent to which exposure to offline and online discussion of political issues, and offline and online media use, as well as political variables and demographic factors, predict an individual's likelihood to engage in selective exposure to blogs. The findings indicate that respondents did practice selective exposure to blogs, predominantly those who are heavy blog users, politically active both online and offline, partisan, and highly educated.
Online campaigning in France
  • K Koc-Michalska
  • R Gibson
  • T Vedel
Koc-Michalska, K., Gibson, R, & Vedel, T. (2014). Online campaigning in France, 2007-2012: Political actors and citizens in the aftermath of the Web.2.0 evolution. Journal of Information Technology & Politics, 11(2), 220-244.
this issue). I shield myself from thee: Selective avoidance on social media during political protests
  • M Skoric
  • Q Zhu
  • S Chen
Skoric, M., Zhu, Q., & Chen, S. (this issue). I shield myself from thee: Selective avoidance on social media during political protests. Political Communication.