From sparks to action: the role of political influencers for young adults’ political efficacy and political participation in Austria, Hong Kong, Indonesia, and Serbia

Two types of social media influencers play an important role in political communication: those who hardly post political content in addition to their regular content (i.e., social media influencers; SMIs) and those who specifically focus on political content (i.e., political social media influencers; PSMIs). To shed light on the difference between the two types, we conducted a comparative cross-sectional survey examining the relationship between following SMIs and PSMIs on young adults’ political efficacy and political participation in Austria, Hong Kong (China), Indonesia, and Serbia. Moreover, we investigated how young adults’ eudaimonic motivation regarding SMIs’ content moderates these relations. Findings showed that following PSMIs, but not following SMIs, is positively associated with young adults’ political efficacy in all countries but Serbia. Additionally, in all countries, young adults’ political efficacy was positively related to their intention to participate in politics. Also, following PSMIs was positively related to participation in Austria and Hong Kong. Eudaimonic motivation played a limited role as moderator. Implications of these findings are discussed in the specific context of each country, providing valuable insights for future research on the role of PSMIs in shaping young adults’ political efficacy and political participation.