Social media and members of the Thirty-eighth (2008–2012) and Thirty-ninth (2013–2017) Parliaments in Western Australia: A mixed methods study

Abstract

This mixed methods longitudinal study explored the everyday information behaviours of members of the Thirty-eighth (2008–2012) and Thirty-ninth (2013–2017) Parliaments in the Parliament of Western Australia (PoWA) by examining their use of social media to communicate with their constituents outside of a formal election campaign. The Theory of Information Worlds (TIW) was the conceptual foundation underpinning the research. The TIW focuses on describing information in social contexts, ranging from very small and local contexts to the larger contexts in which those are embedded (Jaeger & Burnett, 2010). It draws upon Chatman’s concept of small worlds (Burnett, Besant & Chatman, 2001) and Habermas’ (1992) concept of the lifeworld. It contextualises information behaviours within the social worlds that individuals inhabit by exploring five interconnected concepts: Social Norms, Social Types, Information Value, Information Behaviour and Boundaries (Jaeger & Burnett, 2010).