From political news consumption to political participation
The mediating role of ideological polarization across 24 countries
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 19214732 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Andrej Kirbiš (0000-0002-4837-5368, University of Maribor, corresponding author), Maruša Lubej (0009-0006-3500-7212, University of Maribor), Stefani Branilović (0000-0001-7925-1491, University of Maribor) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 56 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 1-31 |
| Publication date | 2026-05-14 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | International Journal of Sociology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0020-7659 • E-ISSN: 1557-9336 |
| Publisher | Taylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/00207659.2026.2667737 |
| OpenAlex | W7161138246 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 86 |
Political news consumption (PNC) can both inform and divide, but whether it promotes political participation through ideological polarization remains unclear. This study examines how PNC affects institutional and non-institutional political participation across 24 European countries, using Round 11 of the European Social Survey and country-level mediation models. Results show PNC positively affects institutional participation in 13 countries and non-institutional participation in three. PNC has a positive direct effect on ideological polarization in eight countries and a negative effect in two. Ideological polarization more consistently predicts participation, with positive effects on institutional participation in 17 countries and non-institutional participation in 21. Positive indirect effects of PNC via polarization are observed in only five countries for institutional and six for non-institutional participation. The United Kingdom shows negative indirect effects for both, suggesting polarization may discourage participation in some contexts. Overall, PNC's effects on participation are highly country-dependent.
Consumption (sociology) · Ideology · Motivated reasoning · Polarization (electrochemistry) · Politics · Media Influence and Politics · Media Studies and Communication · Populism, Right-Wing Movements
SPSS Survival Manual
Outside the Bubble
Good News for the Future? Young People, Internet Use, and Political Participation
New Media, New Relationship to Participation? A Closer Look at Youth News Repertoires and Political Participation
Does Disagreement Mitigate Polarization? How Selective Exposure and Disagreement Affect Political Polarization
How internal political efficacy translates political knowledge into political participation
MissForest—non-parametric missing value imputation for mixed-type data
The changing roles of mass media amidst the growth of the digital media
How Social Media Algorithms Shape Offline Civic Participation
Trust, political knowledge and institutionalized political participation
Incidental news exposure and political consumerism – Exploring nuances
Politically engaged but unwilling to protest
Agenda Setting, Cross-cutting Effects, and Political Expression on Social Media
Social media use and participation
News diets, social media use and non-institutional participation in three communication ecologies
Red Media, Blue Media
Turn a Blind Eye If You Care
An Integrative Theory of Intergroup Conflict
Polarization and Partisan Selective Exposure
The role of (social) media in political polarization
Quantifying reciprocal relationships between poverty and health
Ideological Extremism and Political Participation in Japan
Impact of Customizability Technology on Political Polarization
The influence of media use on different modes of political participation in China
When trust matters—a multilevel analysis of the effect of generalized trust on political participation in 25 European democracies
Does ideological polarisation mobilise citizens
The Trade-Off Between Political Trust and Political Participation
Groups of Individual Attitudes Towards Cultural Issues in Europe
From polarization of the public to polarization of the electorate
A Comparative Analysis of the Relation Between Political Trust and Forms of Political Participation in Europe
Social Media Use for News and Individuals' Social Capital, Civic Engagement and Political Participation
Echo chambers online
Differential Use, Differential Effects
How Cross-Cutting News Exposure Relates to Candidate Issue Stance Knowledge, Political Polarization, and Participation
Young People, Digital Media, and Engagement
Divided by the Algorithm? The (Limited) Effects of Content- and Sentiment-Based News Recommendation on Affective, Ideological, and Perceived Polarization
Digital Media and Political Participation
Media exposure and the engaged citizen
Reinforcing spirals at work? Mutual influences between selective news exposure and ideological leaning
Inequalities in digital welfare take-up
Cleavage politics, polarisation and participation in Western Europe
Connecting a missing link between participation in administration and political participation
News, Political Knowledge and Participation
The Mobilizing Effect of Party System Polarization. Evidence From Europe
Hate prompts participation
Does Political Participation Contribute to Polarization in the United States
Information and Political Engagement in America
Partisan News and Political Participation
Bridging Gaps in Cross-Cutting Media Exposure
How Political Efficacy Relates to Online and Offline Political Participation
Connecting News Media Use with Gaps in Knowledge and Participation
Does Political Trust Matter? A Meta-analysis on the Consequences of Trust
Rigid Religious Faith Promotes Selective Exposure to Attitude-Congruent Political Information
Media Use and Political Predispositions
On the relationship between party polarization and citizen polarization
Party-System Polarization and Individual Perceptions of Party Differences
Does poor health mobilize people into action? Health, political trust, and participation
For every action a reaction? The polarizing effects of women's rights and refugee immigration
A Deeper Look at the Relationship between Political Knowledge and Political Participation
Social Media Platforms and Political Participation
The Political Nature of Ideological Polarization
Feeling validated versus being correct
Affective polarization and habits of political participation
Expressive Partisanship
Reconsidering Baron and Kenny
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |