Mobilization through online social networks: the political protest of the indignados in Spain

Abstract

The 15M demonstration (the origin of the indignados movement in Spain and the seed of the occupy mobilizations) presents some outstanding characteristics that defy the established principles of the collective action paradigm. This article develops some observable implications of the concept of connective action and tests them against the case of the 15M demonstration. Cases of self-organized connective action networks are expected to be different from traditional collective action cases with regard to the characteristics of the organizations involved, the prevalent mobilization channels and the characteristics of participants. Based on a comparative analysis of data gathered from participants and organizations in nine demonstrations held in Spain between 2010 and 2011, relevant and significant differences were found in the characteristics of the 15M staging organizations (recently created, without formal membership and mainly online presence), the main mobilization channels (personal contact and online social networks rather than co-members or broadcast media), and participants (younger, more educated and less politically involved). These findings help to understand the large turnout figures of this movement and have important implications for the mobilization potential of social networks, particularly as it can affect the political participation of the less-involved citizens.

Funding

The authors would like to acknowledge the financial support of the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (research grant number EUI2008-03812).

Notes on contributors

Eva Anduiza is Associate Professor at the Department of Political Science of the Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona since 2003. She holds a PhD in political and social sciences from the European University Institute in Florence. She has taught political science at the University of Salamanca and Murcia in Spain. Her main fields of research are political participation, political attitudes and the consequences of digital media for political engagement. [email: [email protected]]

Camilo Cristancho is PhD student at the Political Science Department of the Autonomous University of Barcelona. He works with the research group Democracy, Elections and Citizenship and is part of the Spanish team in the EU project Caught in the Act of Protest. His work deals primarily with quantitative research and statistical analysis of cross-national surveys on political attitudes and behaviour, and most recently, with protest surveys, social media and data science. [email: [email protected]]

José Manuel Sabucedo is Professor of Social Psychology at the University of Santiago de Compostela (Spain). He was a member of the Governing Council of the International Society of Political Psychology. He is the President of the Spanish Scientific Society of Social Psychology and editor of the journal Revista de Psicología Social. His main research topics are political psychology, political violence, and social movements and political protest. [email: [email protected]]

Notes

1. A complete listing of the cities that organized concentrations can be seen at: http://acampadas15m.blogspot.com.

2. Between 64% and 70% of the Spanish population reported to share the grievances of 15M and to sympathize with the movement (Barometer from the Gabinet d'Estudis Socials i Opinió Pública – GESOP, published in El Periódico 3 June 2011; Metroscopia survey published in El País, 5 June 2011; June 2011 Barometer from the Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas – CIS).

3. The protest cycle started in January 2010 and reached a peak with a nation-wide strike in 29 September 2010 against a reform on the Labour Law (employment regulation flexibility) and changes to the public pension system. From then on, it gained momentum and public officials and health care workers kept up the climate of protest by demonstrating against cutbacks that affected them directly (30,000 persons in Barcelona on 14 April , 2011). The traditional Mayday event had also a significant turnout for a protest against local governments' retrenchment in public spending in education and healthcare programmes. Protest events regarding educational policy developed within a similar timeframe.

4. As much as 10% of the Spanish citizens report in the post election survey of 2011 having participated in any of the protest events organized within the 15M movement (CIS study 2920 available at www.cis.es). Specific analyses of the electoral consequences of the 15M can be found at Anduiza, Mateos, & Martin, 2013).

5. An analysis of the news coverage of the 15M demonstration in Google News for the Spanish and Catalan press in the 30 days preceding the event showed 12 results (search string ‘Democracia Real Ya’). The same analysis for the demonstration called for the general strike of 29 September 2010 (search string UGT CCOO ‘huelga general’) showed 1740 results. Searches for other demonstrations that took place between 2010 and 2011 produced between 23 and 118 results. The search strings and results for this analysis can be provided upon request.

6. Note that two of the three demos in Madrid were related to the crisis and that one was against abortion. This latter demonstration had many differences with respect to the other two, so the group of demonstrators in Madrid was rather heterogeneous.

7. On the geographical diffusion of messages for the concentrations after the demonstration see http://15m.bifi.es/.

8. Photographic evidence can be provided upon request.