Engagement in the Online Campaign in the US and France. A Comparative Analysis

This paper uses original survey data from France and the US to test a model of online participation in national elections (2012). Our existing work on e-participation in the UK has demonstrated the existence of different modes of online participation that replicate offline modes and that also constitute newer ‘e-expressive’ types of engagement. In this paper we specify a measurement model of participation using identical survey items across these two other countries to establish whether these same modes are repeated in other contexts. We do so using a multi-group SCFA to compare the models across countries. Based on the results and the types of participation that emerge we then compare the different profiles of individuals engaging in the different types of online political activity. To do so we apply latent class analysis to test whether clusters of participants and non-participants emerge in each country. We then profile the members of each of these groups on various key socio-demographic and political characteristics and examine the extent to which they are already mobilized in the offline world or from politically excluded or less active sectors of society. The findings are designed to contribute to two important debates in the field. First whether e-participation is a multi-dimensional phenomenon like offline participation and if the categories of participation that emerge are confirmed across different national contexts. Second we seek to investigate the mobilizing potential of e-participation in a more precise manner than has been undertaken to date. By breaking it down into modes or categories as has been done with offline participation it becomes possible to compare the types of people drawn to each mode.