Reciprocal Relationships Between Adolescents’ Incidental Exposure to Climate-Related Social Media Content and Online Climate Change Engagement

Abstract

This study examined whether incidental exposure (IE) to climate content on social media can foster online climate change engagement among mid-to-late adolescents, using two-wave panel data ( Nw1 & w2 = 574) gathered among Flemish adolescents (14–19). Structural equation analyses indicated that online climate change engagement positively predicted IE 4 months later, but not vice versa. IE did not significantly relate to online engagement 4 months later, irrespective of level of climate interest. However, we observed an antecedent role for climate interest; Higher climate interest was reflected in more online climate change engagement. Moreover, IE translated into higher levels of online climate change engagement among adolescents reporting high levels of injunctive peer norms. These findings suggest that social media are reinforcing rather than equalizing gaps in online climate change engagement and demonstrate how dispositional and social factors interact in shaping adolescents’ incidental social media exposure and online engagement.