Family communication patterns, media literacy and civic engagement: A study with Indonesian college students

Understanding the level of media literacy among college students has become increasingly important amid the spread of disinformation or 'fake news' on social media. Currently, the Internet and social media are used to find information and news to participate in better civic engagement in Indonesia. In this study, we hypothesised that family communication, which consists of conversation orientation and conformity orientation, affects civic engagement among young people. A questionnaire designed to test this hypothesis received 330 valid responses that were analysed using structural equation modelling (SEM) and partial least squares (PLS). The findings showed that media literacy was the most significant predictor of civic engagement. We recommend increased attention to media literacy education in Indonesia, and see scope for similar studies in other democratic societies that have high Internet use.