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Interactivity gratifications: Millennials’ motivations in using new media technology for political communication about elections

Millennials’ motivations in using new media technology for political communication about elections

Adwoa Sikayena Amankwah
University of Professional Studies
Blessing Mbatha
University of South Africa
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Interactivity gratifications: Millennials’ motivations in using new media technology for political communication about elections. (2022). Communicare: Journal for Communication Studies in Africa, 40(1), 107-128. https://doi.org/10.36615/jcsa.v40i1.1514
  • Articles
  • Submited: October 4, 2022
  • Published: October 5, 2022

Abstract

The study explored how the interactive attributes of new media technologies influence the
gratification-seeking behaviour of millennials. Using a mixed methods approach, it employed a
survey and focus group interviews to collect data from university students. From a population of
2 400 university students from the Political Science Department of a renowned public university
in Ghana, 400 students were systematically sampled for the survey, while 40 students were
purposively selected for focus group discussions. The findings indicate that the interactive features
of the technologies produced emerging social and psychological gratifications in millennials
by projecting them as purposeful, and active in deploying symmetric political communication
repertoires. The practical implication of this is that political leaders need to invigorate their electoral
communication repertoires both in substance and in depth by deploying the heuristic attributes of
the new technologies to facilitate the awakening of visceral responses in millennials and get them
to engage in e-politics.

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How to Cite
Interactivity gratifications: Millennials’ motivations in using new media technology for political communication about elections. (2022). Communicare: Journal for Communication Studies in Africa, 40(1), 107-128. https://doi.org/10.36615/jcsa.v40i1.1514

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