The Continuance Use of Social Network Sites for Political Participation: Evidences from Arab Countries

ABSTRACT

This research is aimed toward an exploration of the use of social networking sites (SNSs) as a technology platform on which to facilitate political participation and its role in the expression of political views in Arab countries. It is vitally important to study this use of SNSs because they triggered the Arab Spring, which brought down regimes and sparked protests while some other governments were forced to carry out reform. Moreover, factors affecting the continuance use toward SNSs for political participation have not been fully explored. Drawing from the social capital theory and the uses and gratification (U&G) theory, this study examines the antecedents of continuance intention and the continuance use of SNSs for political participation. The results show that social interaction ties, trust, and U&G positively affect continuance intention toward use of SNSs for political participation. Further discussion, implications, and limitations are provided.

KEYWORDS:

• Continuance intention
• continuance use
• social capital theory
• social network sites
• uses & gratifications theory