Factors influencing citizens' preferences for political communication on social media _{Research on people aged from 24 to 38}_{living in Belgium}

Abstract

Political communication mixes communication and political science. As a field of study, it encompasses how information spreads and how it can influences politics, voters, journalists, and policy makers. Nowadays, digitalization imbues every aspect of our society, even politics. The aim of this research is to study qualitatively and quantitatively some characteristics of online political communication in order to establish some guidelines that politicians should follow if they wish to increase their popularity and visibility. Therefore I endeavoured to identify what Belgians voters prefer in terms of political communication on social media, what attributes politicians' digital output should exhibit to have a real positive impact on potential voters. Consequently, the central research question of this study is: 'How do citizens develop a preference for political personalities through their use of social media?'