TY - JOUR
T1 - Communication Infrastructure, Social Media, and Civic Participation across Geographically Diverse Communities in the United States
AU - Nah, Seungahn
AU - Kwon, Hazel K.
AU - Liu, Wenlin
AU - McNealy, Jasmine E.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 Central States Communication Association.
PY - 2021
Y1 - 2021
N2 - Despite a growing body of scholarship on Communication Infrastructure Theory (CIT), the applicability of CIT as an ecological approach in rural and suburban areas remains largely unexplored in comparison with its urban counterpart. The current study advances CIT across the geographically dispersed communities (i.e., urban, suburban, and rural) and explores how community storytelling networks, through social media and interpersonal discussion, interact with the diverse communities on civic participation. A nationwide online panel survey reveals that community-oriented social media (CSM) use was positively associated with civic participation. The results also indicate that the relationship between CSM and civic participation was stronger for those who reside in rural communities. Interpersonal discussion in this study played a similar role for residents living in suburban communities. This study’s theoretical contribution, policy implications, and practical applications are further discussed in the contexts of communication infrastructure, social media, and civic participation.
AB - Despite a growing body of scholarship on Communication Infrastructure Theory (CIT), the applicability of CIT as an ecological approach in rural and suburban areas remains largely unexplored in comparison with its urban counterpart. The current study advances CIT across the geographically dispersed communities (i.e., urban, suburban, and rural) and explores how community storytelling networks, through social media and interpersonal discussion, interact with the diverse communities on civic participation. A nationwide online panel survey reveals that community-oriented social media (CSM) use was positively associated with civic participation. The results also indicate that the relationship between CSM and civic participation was stronger for those who reside in rural communities. Interpersonal discussion in this study played a similar role for residents living in suburban communities. This study’s theoretical contribution, policy implications, and practical applications are further discussed in the contexts of communication infrastructure, social media, and civic participation.
KW - Communication infrastructure
KW - civic participation
KW - community organizations
KW - community social media
KW - interpersonal discussion
KW - local media
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85100320996&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85100320996&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/10510974.2021.1876129
DO - 10.1080/10510974.2021.1876129
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85100320996
SN - 1051-0974
VL - 72
SP - 437
EP - 455
JO - Communication Studies
JF - Communication Studies
IS - 3
ER -