CIVIC ENGAGEMENT AND THE INTERNET

Abstract

The domination of the Internet communication has caused numerous questions which resulted in research undertakings related to different fields. The questions concerning the efficiency of this type of communication, especially of those reflecting on the communication in the real world, have been continually multiplying for the last few years. The focus of this research paper is the correlation between the Internet use and civic engagement. The question whether Internet use could accelerate the activism of people or distract citizens from the real world, has been the crucial issue explored in this paper. Conducting an online questionnaire with Internet users in Serbia (N=254), with the aim of obtaining the answer to the presented research question resulted in the corroboration of the starting hypothesis - Тhe use of the Internet has been in positive correlation with activism in the offline world. Respondents, being the everyday users of the Internet, confirmed that they have a notable participation in online activities, which are further growing into offline activities and thus achieving success outside the Internet.