Politics online: the effect of political internet use on citizens’ political involvement

Since the rise of the Internet, it is often claimed that it has the potential to contribute to the quality of democracy by fostering citizens’ involvement in politics. So far, empirical evidence regarding this acclaimed effect has been mixed, and many questions about the consequences of Political Internet Use (PIU) have remained unanswered. This study expands the knowledge about the relation between PIU and involvement by examining the effect of specific forms of PIU on citizens’ political involvement (i.e., interest and voter turnout) during election times. Results from a panel study among a representative sample of the Dutch population (N = 985) reveal a positive relation between particular forms of PIU on the one hand and voter turnout and political interest on the other hand. In addition, for specific forms of PIU, the positive effect on voter turnout is more prevalent for citizens that have lower levels of political interest.