Liking Obama and Romney (on Facebook): An experimental evaluation of political engagement and efficacy during the 2012 general election

Existing research on the effect of social media use on political behavior has yielded mixed results to date, demonstrating the importance of research examining the effects of varying types of social media communication on political behavior. The experiment reported in this study provides valuable insights into the role of social media in elections. A longitudinal experiment was conducted to assess the effect Facebook use in the 2012 Presidential election had on political information efficacy, external efficacy, and political engagement. Results suggested that while political information efficacy and engagement increased over time, it was not related to following candidates on Facebook. Published by Elsevier Ltd.