Virtual Encounters, Real Impact? How Social Media Affordances Foster Intergroup Contact

This paper examines how social media affordances can facilitate positive intergroup contact to enhance social cohesion in democratic societies. Using social media affordance, we analyzed 30 empirical studies published between 2012 and 2025 that investigated intergroup contact through social media platforms. Our findings reveal that 27 studies documented improved intergroup attitudes across diverse contexts spanning ethnic, religious, and sexual orientation divisions. However, the analysis exposes significant untapped potential: while some affordances dominated the research, others received little attention despite their alignment with optimal contact conditions. We demonstrate social media’s capacity to transcend traditional barriers to intergroup encounter while revealing substantial opportunities for future platform design. This implies that thoughtfully leveraged social media affordances could enable scalable interventions for strengthening inclusion principles.