Connections Between Internet Use and Political Efficacy, Knowledge, and Participation

Usingdata fromthe2000NationalAnnenbergElectionSurvey, this study looksat the relationshipsbetween Internet access andonlineexposure to information about the presidential campaign and political efficacy, knowledge, and participation. Results show that Internet access and on-line exposure to information about the presidential campaign are signifi-cantly associated with these important political variables. Several of the associations between Internet access and exposure with political effi-cacy, knowledge, and participation are detectable even when taking sociodemographic variables, party identification, partisan strength, po-litical interest, and other media exposures variables into account. Al-though statistically significant, these associations are quite small. Over the past decades, the amount of available political information has expanded, thanks in part to the Internet. Political candidates have been using the Internet to up-date individuals through e-mail (Bimber, 1998), to provide information about their is-sue positions (Stromer-Galley, 2000), and to raise money (Dulio, Goff, Thurber,