Attention to Social, News, and Political Content: Using Eye-Tracking to Determine Who Sees What on Facebook

• In Event: Focus on Methods for Addressing Theoretical Questions in Communication and Technology

Abstract

Despite the amount of time that Americans spend on Facebook and other social media, researchers do not have a clear picture of the types of content that receive the most attention on Facebook. Although self-reports of news and political exposure suggest this content can be consequential, these self-reports are likely to misrepresent the level of engagement with diverse posts, especially those that people incidentally see like news and politics. In this study, we use eye-tracking technology to precisely determine how much time people spend with social, news, and political posts, as well as the individual differences that predict content differences. Our results suggest that while political exposure is largely avoided, self-reports may under-represent attention to news content on Facebook. This study represents an important first step to move beyond self-reports to understand the types of content that receive the most attention on Facebook.

Authors

• Emily K Vraga, George Mason University

• Leticia Bode, Georgetown U

• Sonya Troller-Renfree, U of Maryland