Is computer-mediated communication more powerful than face-to-face discussion in mobilizing political participation? A study examines participation in electoral campaigns and political advocacy in Taiwan

Using a representative Taiwan sample from the 2019 Asia Barometer Survey, this study investigated the effect of political interest on two types of political participation (i.e., participation in electoral campaigns and political advocacy) based on the communication mediation model. Findings showed that three communication channels (i.e., news involvement, on-line political expression, and off-line political discussion) mediate the positive relationship between political interest and participation through different paths. When people are more interested in politics, they will be more likely to read political news, leading to more on-line political expression, which then motivates higher level of political participation. In parallel, political interest could also increase political participation first through news involvement and then through off-line political discussion. More importantly, compared with the total indirect effects on participation in electoral campaigns, political interest could exert stronger indirect effect on participation in political advocacy through the three communication channels under study. In addition, the mediating effect of on-line political expression is more powerful than off-line political discussion in mobilizing participation in political advocacy. However, in terms of participation in electoral campaigns, indirect effect through on-line and off-line communication showed no significant difference. Implications of the findings are discussed.