Political Participation Through Facebook Groups: An Examination of the Political Behavior of Facebook Group Members

Abstract

Recent headlines have been dominated by the role of social media in political events, including the 2016 election of Donald Trump. This study seeks to add to the burgeoning academic literature examining the impacts of social media on political life by examining political participation through politically-oriented Facebook groups. Initiated by personal observations, this study aims to contribute to our understanding of political behavior by examining if, how, and why political Facebook group membership affects the political behavior of group members. This study also examines political Facebook group members’ rationales for joining political Facebook groups and attempts determine which social groups are the most active in these groups. Using data collected through an original survey of 17 Facebook groups, this study shows that members of political Facebook groups are more politically active than non-members. In particular, members of political Facebook groups are more likely than non-members to vote in state and local elections, volunteer to support a political campaign, and discuss politics online. In addition, this study shows that political Facebook group members are more likely than non-members to experience changes in their political opinions due to interactions on Facebook, although no evidence is found supporting the hypothesized causal mechanism of the observed opinion change. Furthermore, there is evidence that holding liberal political opinions makes one more likely to join political groups. Finally, this study finds that the most frequent reason Facebook users join political groups is to keep informed.