Do social media matter? Examining social media use and youths’ political participation during the 2019 Nigerian general elections

ABSTRACT

Since their arrival at the intersection of media as political landscapes social media have received tremendous attention among scholars and political actors, given their presumed information democratisation potential. This study contributes to the ongoing debate on the belief that social media provide expressive and mobilisation resources for youths’ political engagement and the counter-argument that the platforms attenuate offline political participation as a side effect of enhancing online political activism. The authors sampled youths in Kwara State of Nigeria, considered one of the hotspots of the Nigerian 2019 general election, to explore the significant contributions of social media use to youths’ political participation in a society craving political change. The findings reveal that the youths are more active in online political participation than offline politics, even after civic activism, political education and political efficacy have been controlled for. These results imply the need to motivate and mobilise the youths for offline political participation as an essential requisite for guaranteeing the future of Nigerian democracy, which has ebbed into a gerontocratic regimentation since 1999.

KEYWORDS:

• Social media
• youths
• civic volunteerism
• political participation
• 2019 Nigerian general election