This paper seeks to specify and empirically test a two-step theoretical model of how internet use is affecting individuals'' likelihood of engaging in politics, specifically in terms of their likelihood of voting. Building on existing theories of participation and mobilization we argue that the key to understanding the social media''s impact on individual political engagement lies in its power to promote informal political discussion which increases levels of individual interest and efficacy in politics. We test our hypothesis using structural equation modeling techniques and two unique data sources i) a pre-election and post-election YouGov panel survey; ii) a face-to-face BMRB post-election survey. We use our results to reflect on the appropriateness of existing theories of participation for understanding online participation and the extent to which the new media can be seen as providing a channel for mobilization of previously less engaged individuals
