1. Uses and effects of online vote aids among young people in the Netherlands Fadi Hirzalla Jan de Ridder Liesbet van Zoonen

2. VoteMatch What is it? Increasingly popular Increasingly controversial
30 issues
Party advice /political location
Increasingly popular
4.7 million last Dutch elections
Nl, Ge, Swi, Fr, UK, Bulgaria, Georgia..
Increasingly controversial

3. Research questions Background Our questions:
Not much known about use and effects
Our questions:
How does age affect the use of VoteMatch?
How do the young differ in their use?
How does age affect the effect of VoteMatch?
How do the young differ in regard to the effect of smart vote aids?

4. Academic context Political citizenship of the young
Less informed
Less knowledge
Less engagement
Less participation
Less trust
All indicators move in the same direction
Young men score higher on these indicators
Higher education ► higher scores
Higher news consumption ►higher scores
Internet: reinforcement or moderation?

5. Methodology Data collection: internet; part of six-wave panel study
Sample size: 819
Young (‹ 26), middle (26 – 35), old (› 35)
Structural equation modeling (AMOS)
Dependent
Party choice
Using a VoteMatch instrument (0-2)
(In)Dependent:
Intensity of news consumption
Independent:
Age, gender (education empirically absent)
Political interest, political knowledge

6. Causes ► all Intensity news consumption Using VoteMatch Age Gender
40 %
P=.603
Political knowledge
Using VoteMatch
Political interest
15 %

7. Causes ► young (‹ 26) Intensity news consumption Using VoteMatch Age
Gender
31 %
P=.487
Political knowledge
Using VoteMatch
Political interest
9 %

8. Causes ► old ( › 35) Intensity news consumption Using VoteMatch Age
Gender
39 %
P=.487
Political knowledge
Using VoteMatch
Political interest
11 %

9. How do the young differ (use)
The young use VoteMatch more than older generations
Among the young differences according to:
Gender (girls use more)
Political interest
Gender only important among the young
Political knowledge irrelevant among the young
Political interest not relevant for > 35 (mediated through news consumption)

10. Effects Before Advice After CDA 9% 12% 13% young 13 18 PvdA 17% 8 19
VVD
16% 3% 22 4 17 SP
21%
23%
25% 9 16
PVV 4% 6% 1
other
20%
34%
22% 31 30
Total
86%
97%
94% 83
100 94
N=499 respondents which consult the VoteMatch
N= 77 young

11. Conclusion
VoteMatch use not well explained yet – in particular, only 9% of VoteMatch use by young was explained by the present model.
The young are a specific group
Young direct route to VoteMatch through political interest, not through classic factors (media, knowledge)
Old route to VoteMatch through knowledge and news consumption
VoteMatch: solution or problem?
Extra analysis needed
Substantial voting
Full cause and effect model

12. B

13. B

14. B