Comfort using cell phones could determine civic, political engagement

ANN ARBOR, Mich.—If you use your cell phone to talk about news of the day or to express opinions about issues, you are more likely to be civically and politically engaged, a new study says. "The mobile phone is really expanding in terms of its use in ways that appear to foster connection to civic and political life," said Scott Campbell, an assistant professor of communication studies at the University of Michigan and study's lead author. He co-wrote the study with Nojin Kwak, an associate professor in the Department of Communication Studies. Study data came from a national mail survey following the 2006 mid-term Congressional elections. The sample reflected demographic distributions within the U.S. Census Bureau's divisions of household income, population density, panel member's age, gender and region. Respondents reported the frequency in which they participated in a certain activity in the past two months. Civic engagement involved activities such as working on community project, contributing money to or working on behalf of a social group or cause.