Abstract
There is a rise in unprecedented political infractions, disturbances and electoral violence in Africa with the youth playing a significant role. Thus, the study broadly investigated social media use and electoral violence among the youth in Kenya using two objectives that were to assess the use of social media platforms among the youth and to investigate the relationship between social media use and electoral violence among the youth. Guided by the Dependency Theory and the Social Responsibility Theory, the study was carried out in Mathare Constituency, Nairobi County, Kenya. Data collection involved questionnaires, key informant interviews and focus group discussions. Analysis of quantitative data was by descriptive statistics and regression while qualitative data was analyzed through transcription. The study findings showed that the use of social media platforms in communication has been growing with WhatsApp becoming the most ‘preferred’ platform in Kenya. The study outcome exposed the fact that social media had an important and positive effect on electoral violence among the Kenyan youth in Mathare (R = .812). On the other hand, social media (Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram) had a strong explanatory strength on electoral violence among the Kenyan youth in Mathare (R2 = .659). This means that social media accounts for 65.9 percent of electoral violence among the Kenyan youth in Mathare Constituency, Nairobi County. The study, therefore, concluded that there is a relationship between social media and electoral violence among the Kenyan youth in Mathare. The study finally recommends that the government should embrace and enforce self-regulation mechanisms by Internet service providers to deter incitement. In addition, there should be increased efforts to educate and inform Internet users on the importance of assessing the credibility of information. Promotion of productive engagement as an effective instrument of dealing with online hatred is key.
Highlights
The world is witnessing an explosion in the use of social media, especially among the youth amidst rampant political aggression
Applications including Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram had a strong explanatory strength on electoral violence among the Kenyan youths in Mathare variations. These applications were found to account for 65.9 percent of electoral violence among Kenyan youths in Mathare change (R2 = .659)
This means that social media accounts for 65.9 percent of electoral violence among Kenyan youth in Mathare Constituency, Nairobi County while the remaining 34.1 percent is accounted for by other factors in the study
Summary
The world is witnessing an explosion in the use of social media, especially among the youth amidst rampant political aggression. In Kenya, as in many sub-Sahara African countries, traditional media such as newspapers and radio do not appeal to the youth because they are viewed as opinionated and old fashioned. This has resulted to youth opting for social media use as an alternative for dialogue, as they have learnt that they can use this channel to shape discourse surrounding (dis)empowerment (Iwilade, 2013). The growing awareness of new media, as posited by Zuckerman (2007), could provide a platform for discussions among the public and information sharing He contends that media tends to work best not in highly repressive nations but in moderately repressive ones. The assumption that there is high demand for social media in Kenya in the face of traditional media could be true and is expected to grow as long as there is excessive control on traditional print media
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
