Social Media and Collective Action Participation: A Socio-psychological Investigation

• In Event: 579 - Section on Communication, Information Technologies, and Media Sociology Refereed Roundtable Session and Business Meeting
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 10. Social Media Studies

Abstract

This paper investigates effects of social media on collective action participation by addressing selection bias, disentangling social media mechanisms, and analyzing mediating socio-psychological factors. Utilizing a unique designed survey that allows for addressing selection bias and endogeneity control, I investigate a large scale street demonstration in Taiwan. I propose a structural-cognitive model that synthesizes macro level technological factors and individual level incentives to explain determinants of collective action participation. I find that social media expression, rather than social media information, has direct effects on protest participation. Furthermore, the effect is unlikely due to selection bias, which is a large limitation of current studies. Regarding the macro-micro model, social media expression increases levels of identification, friend positive incentive, and individual efficacy, which in turn lead to protest participation. My results suggest social media as a new mobilization structure that changes psychological states of individuals, which broadens the pool of collective action sympathizers. To my knowledge, this paper is the first to propose such a macro-micro model to explain mechanisms of social media on collective action. The study demonstrates how a synthetic framework between disciplines of sociology, psychology, and communication enables a holistic understanding of collective action.

Author

• Yuan Hsiao, University of Washington