Date of Award

Spring 2019

Degree Type

Masters Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

School

Social Science and Global Studies

Committee Chair

Iliyan Iliev

Committee Chair School

Social Science and Global Studies

Committee Member 2

Marek Steedman

Committee Member 2 School

Social Science and Global Studies

Committee Member 3

Troy Gibson

Committee Member 3 School

Social Science and Global Studies

Abstract

The internet is a political participation medium that has been subject to constant changes. Just since 2008, there has been a significant increase in the amount of people who use the internet for political purposes. Building on the work of Brian Kruger and others I evaluate whether the internet brings new participants into the political process or if the internet only "reinforces" those who already participate. I utilize data from recent American National Election Studies to employ an ordinary least-squares regression model for recent presidential election years and assess whether the internet has brought new participants into the political fray via online political participation. I then employ a mixed effects model to identify the driving force behind an increase in online participation. Similar to Krueger and other’s findings I can conclusively claim that the internet is continuing to serve as a medium for participation by those who are not known to be active participants through traditional means, namely those of a younger age; that effect is shown to continue over time. I also find that the increase in online participation is due to the growing importance of internet-based skills in political participation.

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