About Digital Public Affairs

Many political organizations, politicians and interest groups are anxious to learn how to best reach citizens online. I have researched how youth organizations (based in the United Kingdom) do so, both on their websites and then later on social media. It’s been interesting to gain insight into choices about web presence while keeping in mind how these organizations think about young people as citizens. I looked at two types of organizations: both those connected to government, and those focused on single issues like the environment or animal rights. Whatever the focus, I found that all organizations subscribed to a similar web strategy. The overarching goal of web content was a wish to create engaged citizens. This was accomplished in two ways: First, web content was used to provide information to young visitors. Second, organizations pursued an “inform then involve” approach to get youth engaged and participating. However, in a practical sense, both steps of this strategy consisted mainly of information provision. All organizations used their websites for one-way communication designed to educate young people about their mission and current projects. I found only small attempts to be interactive, like through polls or encouragement to email the organization. This was also the case for the “inform them involve” approach: Organizations provided calls to action, and opportunities to sign up for campaigns, but youth were not given the opportunity to express their opinions or ask questions in a virtual space. Perhaps one would assume this would change in an interactive environment like social media. As organizations adapted to Facebook, they still saw its purpose as a place to provide information. Some did encourage interaction from visitors when asking them to “like” the organization. Facebook pages provided more transparency, though the interactions with citizens were quite rare and superficial. What Facebook seemed to add was access to previously private conversations – when they were facilitated. Whatever the stated purpose of the youth organization, the ultimate goal was to create engaged citizens. But can this be accomplished without dialogue? The importance of online presence – particularly on social media – will only increase over time. But with evidence of an apparent hesitation to embrace online interactivity, what does this say about willingness to ease control of the message? And if such interaction is realized, what are the consequences for the philosophy – and even the legitimacy – of youth and other political organizations? About the author: Janelle Ward is Lead UX Researcher at Mendix. Her research and consultancy expertise has focused on user-centered research in digital environments. During her 15 years in academia she researched the political youth user experience and the practices of dating app users. Janelle is also an avid fiction writer. To learn more please visit janelleward.com