The Maltese youth self-reported use of social media for political engagement

Abstract

In recent years, social media has gained significant popularity among young adults as a powerful tool for political involvement. Young people now have new ways to express their political opinions, participate in dialogues, and participate in a range of diverse activities due to social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. The simplicity of usage and accessibility of social media has made it an attractive platform for youth to participate in political discussions, mobilise for political action, and interact with others who share the same ideas. This study explored the link between social media use and political participation among young adults in tertiary education in Malta, and its effect on their political participation offline. By employing a cross-sectional quantitative research design, the study collected data from 410 participants through a self-administered questionnaire. The recruitment process implemented a multi-pronged approach to target participants aged between 18 and 25 years. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the data, which revealed interesting findings. The study's results challenge the common notion of political alienation and apathy among young adults, demonstrating that social media is widely used for political engagement. The findings indicate that Facebook is the most popular platform, followed by Instagram and Twitter. Participants were also found to be involved in various activities on social media, such as posting political content and following individuals due to their political views. The study also reveals that social media is an efficient means of increasing political awareness, seeking information and knowledge regarding political issues, and stimulating interest in participating in online political discussions. Additionally, it was discovered that social media was highly important in promoting offline political engagement, particularly in mobilising people for direct political action. The study underlines social media's potential to promote political participation and offers insightful information on how it affects young adults' political engagement.