Socio‐political issues and environments are becoming more complex and challenging. In this introduction to the special issue on ‘The Management of Socio‐Political Issues and Environments: ...Organizational and Strategic Perspectives’, we take stock of the burgeoning research on how firms interact with socio‐political actors and environments over the last few decades, specifically research on Corporate Political Activity and Corporate Social Responsibility. We then argue that the socio‐political environments and actors with which firms interact are in a state of flux, such that issues are more interrelated and dynamic, and actors are more diverse and demanding. As such, we propose a new concept of corporate socio‐political engagement (CSPE), which represents a more holistic perspective to understanding complex interactions among firms and their social/political stakeholders, incorporating and transcending conventional notions and tactics documented in the extant nonmarket strategy literature. Using a two‐dimensional framework that captures the identity of socio‐political actor or the nature of socio‐political issues (political, social, or both) as well as the relevant level of analysis at which the interactions unfold, we showcase the contributions of the special issue articles to this research agenda. Finally, we discuss and specify future research directions for revealing the multifaceted nature of CSPE.
Social media are frequently touted for their potential to strengthen democratic processes by bringing politicians and citizens into dialogue with one another. Social media may enrich the public ...sphere and improve democratic decision-making by allowing politicians and constituents to discuss matters of political import directly, free from intermediaries. But what factors impact whether this potential is realized? Previous research has focused on politicians’ structural incentives for strategic communication online but neglected the impact of citizen demand for politicians’ attention. I examine the role of citizen demand using an original dataset comprising the Twitter activity from and to members of the lower legislative houses in the Netherlands, United Kingdom, and United States during the latter half of October 2013. The data suggest that citizen demand plays a crucial role in determining the presence, as well as the extent, of politicians’ reciprocal engagement with members of the public.
Dual screening—the complex bundle of practices that involve integrating, and switching across and between, live broadcast media and social media—is now routine for many citizens during important ...political media events. But do these practices shape political engagement, and if so, why? We devised a unique research design combining a large‐scale Twitter dataset and a custom‐built panel survey focusing on the broadcast party leaders' debates held during the 2014 European Parliament elections in the United Kingdom. We find that relatively active, “lean‐forward” practices, such as commenting live on social media as the debate unfolded, and engaging with conversations via Twitter hashtags, have the strongest and most consistent positive associations with political engagement.
It is a hitherto open and debated question whether the belief in conspiracies increases or attenuates the willingness to engage in political action. In the present article, we tested the notion, ...whether (a) the relation between belief in conspiracies and general political engagement is curvilinear (inverted U-shaped) and (b) there may be opposing relations to normative versus nonnormative forms of political engagement. Two preregistered experiments (N = 194, N = 402) support both propositions and show that the hypothetical adoption of a worldview that sees the world as governed by secret plots attenuates reported intentions to participate in normative, legal forms of political participation but increases reported intentions to employ nonnormative, illegal means of political articulation. These results provide first evidence for the notion that political extremism and violence might seem an almost logical conclusion when seeing the world as governed by conspiracies.
This study examines the political implications of social media through the lens of digital disconnectivity. Specifically, it focuses on politically motivated unfriending and examines its influence on ...individuals’ political engagement, namely political expression and information consumption on social media. Furthermore, considering the importance of minority–majority relations for understanding disconnection phenomena, we investigate whether the impact of unfriending is more pronounced among opinion minorities than majorities. Using a two-wave panel survey conducted in the post-Umbrella Movement Hong Kong, we find that politically motivated unfriending predicts an increased level of political expression, but that it is only significant among people who perceive themselves as holding minority opinions. At the same time, we find no relationship between unfriending and information consumption on social media. Based on the findings, we discuss the implications of unfriending for building digital “safe spaces” and its distinct role in promoting political engagement in times of political conflicts.
EPDF and EPUB available Open Access under CC-BY-NC-ND license. In the wake of populism, Timothy Stacey’s book critically reflects on what is missing from the liberal project with the aim of saving ...liberalism. It explains that populists have harnessed myth, ritual, magic and tradition to advance their ambitions, and why opponents need to embrace rather than eschew them. Via examples of liberally oriented activists in Vancouver, it presents an accessible theorisation of these quasi-religious concepts in secular life.
Education and political engagement Le, Kien; Nguyen, My
International journal of educational development,
September 2021, 2021-09-00, Letnik:
85
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
•We estimate the political returns to education across 39 countries.•We employ the instrumental variable method as the identification strategy.•Education cultivates political interest and the ...acquisition of political knowledge.•Education also fosters supportive attitudes toward political freedoms.•Education, however, does not alter participatory acts in politics.
While the robust and positive relationship between education and political engagement has been widely documented, the direct causal link is still a subject of debate. This study contributes to the ongoing debate by presenting suggestive evidence for the ‘cause’ view on the causal effect of education on political engagement. Exploiting the plausibly exogenous variation in education induced by the compulsory schooling reforms across 39 countries, we find that education cultivates political interest, promotes the acquisition of political knowledge, and fosters supportive attitudes towards political freedoms. Nevertheless, the better educated are no more likely to vote in elections nor adopt any specific position in the left–right political spectrum.
Most online media consumption is not driven by a desire to seek out news and politics. However, the public may still encounter politics because it arises organically in communities devoted to ...non-political subjects. This study examines the potential of popular reality television online discussion forums to serve as online third spaces and stimulate political discussion due to the natural connections that audiences make between the cast members and “real life” in reality-based programming. Based on a quantitative analysis of political comments made to reality television subreddits and a survey of visitors to a popular subreddit focused on The Bachelor television show, the findings not only demonstrate the ability of entertainment-focused online communities to expose a broad segment of the public to political talk, but also point to the obstacles in promoting political discussion that is simultaneously enjoyable, informative, and tolerant of diverse viewpoints.
Political engagement of the young generation is needed for a democratic country, including Indonesia. However, political engagement has psychological challenges for the younger generation. This study ...aimed to determine the political engagement level of the young generation and some factors that influence it. The research was designed with mixed methods. The political engagement scale (16 items; α =0.862) was administered with an open-ended questionnaire to 600 students. Interviews to deepen the answers to the questionnaire were conducted with 6 participants (3 male, and 3 female). The results indicate that the political engagement of the young generation, especially college students, is in the high category. Factors that influence political engagement include personal factors (motivation to contribute and personal interest), national condition factors (perception of the nation's condition and perceived influence), information access factors, and social-environmental factors. This finding complements previous research, that personal factors are the most powerful in influencing student political involvement. The research has implications for government institutions, education, political parties, and families in influencing the political engagement of the younger generation with effective strategies.
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