Facebook More Effective at Mobilizing Voters

AUSTIN, Texas - Political campaigns and organizations are turning to digital media in an effort to mobilize voters, and now a new study from The University of Texas at Austin shows just how Facebook can serve as an effective tool for increasing voter turnout. In a study published in the Journal of Communication , researchers found that individuals are significantly more likely to vote if they receive reminders through Facebook that voting records are public - and either messages of encouragement or shame to vote. In particular, messages shaming Facebook friends for not voting, by posting and tagging friends who had not voted, had the most significant effect on increasing voter mobilization. Additionally, the study found that these methods were significantly more successful in increasing voter turnout than traditional get-out-the-vote campaigns such as door-to-door canvassing or political mailers. The study, - Social Pressure on Social Media: Using Facebook Status Updates to Increase Voter Turnout ,' was authored by Katherine Haenschen, (Ph.D., '16), a Radio-Television-Film alumna and visiting scholar at the Moody College of Communication Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Life. 'This study provides evidence that Facebook can be used to increase voter participation by leveraging social norms," Haenschen said. 'The Facebook platform offers its users the ability to generate an increase in turnout by tagging their friends directly.