Online Public Participation in Megaprojects: Unpacking Impacts of Social Media

As an important part of stakeholder management, public participation has always attracted a lot of attention in the area of megaprojects. In digital age, connotations of public participation are constantly evolving with the development of information technology. However, few researchers have focused on impacts of public participation with the involvement of social media. Combined with engineering practice, this study establishes an information exchange system for megaprojects in social media, in which the utility of online public participation is significantly enhanced. This study shed a light on the way of using social media as a method to better communicate with the public. In addition, the findings of this paper is conducive to promoting project stakeholders to adopt appropriate implementation plans to enhance the ability to maintain amicable partnerships with the public.