The Internet and new modes of political participation: online versus offline participation

Political participation refers to all forms of involvement in which citizens express their political opinion and/or convey that opinion to political decision-makers. Some of the most innovative forms of political participation developed during the past decade are based on the use of online communication tools. There is still no consensus in the scientific literature, however, about the impact of online communication on citizens' civic and political engagement. The main goal of this article is therefore to understand whether specific online and/or offline political participation patterns exist especially among young people who are known to be the most fervent Internet users. The analysis utilizes survey data on various forms of offline and online political engagement among undergraduate students from 2011.