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We’re a good match: Selective political friending on social networking sites

  • Manuel Cargnino ORCID logo EMAIL logo , German Neubaum und Stephan Winter
Veröffentlicht/Copyright: 26. Mai 2023

Abstract

To date, the role of user behavior in the formation of politically homogeneous online environments (oftentimes called echo chambers) is not fully understood. Building on selective exposure research, we introduce the notion of selective political friending, that is, the preference for political like-mindedness in social affiliations on social networking sites. In a pre-registered laboratory experiment with users of social networking sites in Germany (N = 199), we find that users preferably build connections with those who share their opinions toward controversial political issues. Political like-mindedness outperforms other friending criteria such as popularity or career-related fit with another user. Political friending is pronounced when individuals’ pre-existing opinions are strong. The present study points to the necessity to take the motivational complexity into account when studying phenomena linked to political homogeneity on SNS.


Funder Name

Ministerium für Kultur und Wissenschaft des Landes Nordrhein-Westfalen, Funder Id: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100014690, Grant Number: 005-1709-0004


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Published Online: 2023-05-26
Published in Print: 2023-05-26

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Heruntergeladen am 18.9.2025 von https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/commun-2021-0028/html
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