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Age estimation in puppies and young adult dogs : data driven protocol design for the prevention and detection of age fraud in puppy trade
No full text‘Een buitengewoon verontrustend gewetensprobleem’ : de Belgische magistratuur en door verzetsgroepen gepleegd geweld tegen collaborateurs 1940-1950
No full textAnalysis of maize growth under drought in an automated plant phenotyping platform
No full textDe mogelijkheden van de moleculaire gereedschapskoffers beschikbaar voor plantenbiotechnologen om het genoom van gewassen te bestuderen zijn tegenwoordig enorm uitgebreid. Om deze mogelijkheden ten volle te benutten, is het noodzakelijk om de relatie tussen genotype en fenotype en de invloed van omgevingsomstandigheden te begrijpen. Hiervoor is het noodzakelijk om sneller, meer en gedetailleerde fenotypische informatie van planten te verzamelen. Hier doen ‘High-Throughput Plant Phenotyping’ platformen hun intrede. Zij combineren gecontroleerde omgevingsomstandigheden met geavanceerde beeldvormingstechnieken om snel en niet-destructief grote hoeveelheden planten fenotypisch te analyseren. In dit doctoraatsonderzoek worden nieuwe methodes ontwikkeld om de groei van maïs op te volgen aan de hand van automatische kleurenfoto’s genomen op het fenotyperingsplatform Phenovision in het VIB-UGent Centrum voor Plantensysteembiologie. Deze methoden worden meteen gebruikt om de bovengrondse groei van een wildtype maïs en de effecten van langdurige droogte daarop in kaart te brengen. De groeimechanismen van stengels wordt vergeleken met die van bladeren en de verhoudingen in groei tussen de verschillende organen en bijdrage aan de totale biomassa over de ontwikkeling worden beschreven. Deze beschrijvingen vormen een goede basis voor toekomstig onderzoek met deze methoden op nieuwe maïslijnen of naar het effect van specifieke genen op deze processen
Of feathers and birds : the role of offending peers in the transmission of violent offending in offender networks
No full textViolent crime tends to follow recognizable patterns that unfold not only across space and time, but
also through social relationships. While prior research has primarily emphasized environmental and
situational explanations for the spread of (violent) crime, such perspectives often overlook the social
processes that shape offending behavior. A growing body of work highlights the importance of
interpersonal relationships and peer influence in the development and persistence of criminal
behavior, suggesting that violence may diffuse through social ties rather than solely through spatial or
temporal proximity. Over the last decade, researchers have increasingly turned to social network
approaches to examine how crime, and particularly violent crime, may be transmitted through
interpersonal connections. Co-offending networks, in which individuals are connected through jointly
committed offenses, offer a valuable context to study these dynamics. Co-offending is often embedded
in pre-existing social ties and shaped by group processes that can reinforce criminal behavior. These
networks thus serve not only as an organizing structure for criminal collaboration, but potentially also
as a medium for the diffusion of violent behavior.
Despite these recent insights, the question of how violent offending behavior spreads through cooffending networks remains unexplored. Existing studies tend to examine violence either as a
situational outcome of group offending, a risk factor for victimization, or a behavioral tendency shaped
by exposure to violent peers. While each line of research offers important contributions, they often
operate in isolation and overlook how violence may diffuse across the structure of co-offending
networks. In particular, little is known about how offenders’ network positions, the nature of their cooffending interactions, and the criminal profiles of their associates might influence their own violent
offending trajectories. This doctoral research addresses these gaps by adopting a network-based
perspective to examine to what extent structural and interpersonal dynamics within co-offending
networks help explain the transmission of physically violent offending behavior.
To achieve this, this research draws upon complementary theoretical frameworks. The social structure
social learning model, building on differential association and social learning theories, posits that
violence is learned through interactions with others within social structures, particularly through
mechanisms like reinforcement. The rational choice perspective enhances this by emphasizing
offenders' agency in selecting co-offenders and weighing risks and rewards, offering insights into how
violent ties may form. Finally, network criminology bridges these perspectives, providing a structural
lens to understand how the positions and relationships within co-offending networks influence the
spread of violent behavior. Together, these frameworks offer a comprehensive understanding of how
violent offending behavior may propagate and evolve within criminal networks.
Due to the limited literature on how violent offending spreads within co-offending networks, this
dissertation first presents an integrative literature review (n = 39 studies) on adolescent peer networks.
This review explored how social network compositions shape the transmission of deviant behavior,
offering insights into peer influence mechanisms relevant to criminal behavior. By identifying key
concepts, patterns, and gaps in the literature, this review lays the groundwork for the subsequent
empirical analyses of violent offending behavior within co-offending networks.
The first empirical study focused on how the structure of co-offending networks facilitates or hinders
the spread of violent behavior, emphasizing the role of violent homophily among offenders. Using a
police-recorded crime dataset of 33,815 offenders, the study examined whether violent offenders
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were more likely to co-offend with others of similar violent backgrounds, finding a pattern of
behavioral homophily. The analysis further showed that violent behavior was more likely to spread
within certain subcomponents of the co-offending network, rather than being uniformly distributed
across the entire network. These findings highlight the importance of both behavioral homophily and
network structure in shaping the transmission of violent offending within co-offending networks.
The second empirical study focused on the extent to which co-offending interactions influence the
persistence of violent offending behavior. Conducting two binary logistic regressions on policerecorded crime data (n = 20,203 offenders), the study examined the impact of the violent nature of cooffenders and co-offenses on future (violent) offending behavior. A prominent finding was that cooffending in violent acts significantly heightened the likelihood of future violent offending, indicating
that direct participation in violence may be a critical mechanism in the transmission of violent
offending behavior. While co-offending with violent individuals generally increased the likelihood of
reoffending, violent co-offenses strongly influenced the persistence of violent offending in particular.
These findings highlight the importance of both the type of co-offender and the nature of co-offenses
in shaping the continuity of violent offending behavior within co-offending networks.
The third empirical study focused on how violent behavior and co-offending interactions shape
offenders' network positions within a co-offending network. Using police-recorded crime data (n =
1,693 offenders), the study examined the impact of violent offending and co-offender characteristics
on offenders' centrality and importance within the network through three multinomial logistic
regressions. Key findings showed that offenders who predominantly engaged in violent offenses were
more likely to become less central, while severe violence increased prominence. In addition, cooffending with accomplices in intermediary positions increased an offender’s prominence, whereas
those exclusively co-offending with violent individuals experienced greater instability in their position.
The results underscore the role of both violent behavior and co-offending interactions in shaping
offenders’ network positions.
Together, the findings of this dissertation provide insights into the transmission of physically violent
offending behavior within co-offending networks. By examining both structural and interpersonal
dynamics, this research enhances our understanding of the mechanisms through which violent
offending behavior may spread. The findings emphasize the critical role of network topology,
highlighting how specific positions within a co-offending network may facilitate or hinder the diffusion
of violence. Additionally, the research underscores the importance of the nature of co-offending
relationships. The interconnectedness of structural and interpersonal dynamics also reveals how
network positions can be shaped by offenders' criminal relationships. This doctoral research provides
a more comprehensive framework for studying the transmission of violent offending, suggesting
avenues for future research and informing the development of targeted interventions and policies
aimed at disrupting violent crime transmission within criminal networks.Gewelddadige criminaliteit volgt vaak herkenbare patronen die zich niet alleen over ruimte en tijd
ontvouwen, maar ook door sociale relaties. Terwijl eerder onderzoek voornamelijk omgevings- en
situationele verklaringen heeft benadrukt voor de verspreiding van (gewelddadige) criminaliteit,
negeren deze perspectieven vaak de sociale processen die vorm geven aan crimineel gedrag. Een
groeiend aantal studies benadrukt het belang van interpersoonlijke relaties en de invloed van peers in
de ontwikkeling en het aanhouden van crimineel gedrag. Deze studies suggereren dat geweld zich via
sociale banden verspreidt, eerder dan uitsluitend via ruimtelijke of temporele nabijheid. In het
afgelopen decennium hebben onderzoekers in toenemende mate sociale netwerkbenaderingen
gebruikt om te onderzoeken hoe criminaliteit – en in het bijzonder geweldscriminaliteit – kan worden
overgedragen via interpersoonlijke connecties. Medeplegersnetwerken, waarin individuen verbonden
zijn door gezamenlijk gepleegde misdrijven, bieden een waardevolle context om deze dynamieken te
bestuderen. Medeplegen ontstaat vaak in reeds bestaande sociale banden en wordt beïnvloed door
groepsprocessen die crimineel gedrag kunnen versterken. Deze netwerken fungeren dus niet enkel als
organisatorische structuren voor criminele samenwerking, maar ook als mogelijke kanalen voor de
verspreiding van gewelddadig gedrag.
Ondanks deze recente inzichten is nog weinig bekend over hoe gewelddadig pleeggedrag zich
verspreidt binnen medeplegersnetwerken. Bestaande studies benaderen geweld vaak als een
situationele uitkomst van groepsmisdrijven, een risicofactor voor slachtofferschap of als gedrag dat
gevormd wordt door blootstelling aan gewelddadige peers. Hoewel elk van deze perspectieven
waardevolle inzichten oplevert, werken ze vaak in isolatie en negeren ze hoe geweld zich kan
verspreiden binnen de structuur van medeplegersnetwerken. Specifiek is er weinig geweten over hoe
de netwerkposities van plegers, de aard van hun criminele interacties en het pleegprofiel van hun
medeplegers hun eigen gewelddadige traject kunnen beïnvloeden. Dit doctoraatsonderzoek vult deze
hiaten in door een netwerkgebaseerd perspectief te hanteren om te onderzoeken in welke mate
structurele en interpersoonlijke dynamieken binnen medeplegersnetwerken de verspreiding van
fysiek gewelddadig pleeggedrag helpen verklaren.
Dit onderzoek bouwt op complementaire theoretische kaders. Het “sociale structuur sociaal
leermodel”, dat voortbouwt op de differentiële associatietheorie en sociale leertheorie, stelt dat
geweld wordt geleerd door interacties met anderen in sociale structuren, in het bijzonder via
mechanismen zoals bekrachtiging. Het rationele keuzeperspectief vult dit aan door de nadruk te leggen
op het vermogen van plegers om medeplegers te selecteren en risico's en beloningen af te wegen. Dit
biedt inzicht in hoe gewelddadige banden kunnen ontstaan. Tot slot biedt netwerkcriminologie een
structureel perspectief om te begrijpen hoe posities en relaties binnen medeplegersnetwerken de
verspreiding van gewelddadig gedrag kunnen beïnvloeden. Samen bieden deze kaders een breed
inzicht in hoe gewelddadig pleeggedrag zich kan verspreiden en ontwikkelen binnen criminele
netwerken.
Gezien de beperkte literatuur over de verspreiding van gewelddadig gedrag binnen
medeplegersnetwerken, omvat dit proefschrift eerst een integratiefliteratuuroverzicht(n = 39 studies)
van peer-netwerken bij adolescenten. Deze literatuurstudie onderzocht hoe samenstellingen van
sociale netwerken de overdracht van deviant gedrag beïnvloeden en biedt inzichten in peerinvloedmechanismen die relevant zijn voor crimineel gedrag. Door sleutelconcepten, patronen en
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hiaten in de literatuur te identificeren, legt deze literatuurstudie de basis voor de daaropvolgende
empirische analyses van gewelddadig pleeggedrag binnen medeplegersnetwerken.
De eerste empirische studie onderzocht hoe de structuur van medeplegersnetwerken de verspreiding
van gewelddadig gedrag faciliteert of belemmert, met nadruk op de mate van gedragsmatige
gelijkenissen tussen plegers. Aan de hand van een politiedataset van 33,815 plegers werd onderzocht
of gewelddadige plegers eerder geneigd waren om misdrijven te plegen met andere plegers met een
vergelijkbare gewelddadige achtergrond. Hierbij werd een patroon van gedragsmatige gelijkenissen
vastgesteld. Daarnaast toonden de analyses dat gewelddadig gedrag eerder verspreid kan worden
binnen bepaalde subcomponenten van het netwerk, dan gelijkmatig doorheen het hele netwerk. Deze
bevindingen benadrukken het belang van zowel gedragsmatige gelijkenissen als de netwerkstructuur
in de verspreiding van gewelddadig gedrag binnen medeplegersnetwerken.
De tweede empirische studie richtte zich op de mate waarin interacties met medeplegers een invloed
hebben op de voortzetting van gewelddadig pleeggedrag. Door middel van twee binaire logistische
regressies op politiedata (n = 20,203 plegers), werd onderzocht welk effect de gewelddadige aard van
medeplegers en mededelicten had op toekomstig (gewelddadig) gedrag. Een belangrijke bevinding
was dat het medeplegen van gewelddadige misdrijven de waarschijnlijkheid op toekomstige
gewelddadige misdrijven aanzienlijk verhoogde. Dit suggereert dat directe deelname aan geweld een
cruciaal mechanisme vormt in de overdracht van gewelddadig pleeggedrag. Terwijl medeplegen met
gewelddadige individuen over het algemeen de kans op recidive verhoogde, was het gewelddadige
karakter van de gezamenlijk gepleegde misdrijven een sterkere voorspeller van aanhoudend
gewelddadig gedrag. Deze bevindingen onderstrepen het belang van zowel het type medepleger als
de aard van gezamenlijk gepleegde misdrijven voor de continuïteit van gewelddadig gedrag binnen
medeplegersnetwerken.
De derde empirische studie richtte zich op hoe gewelddadig gedrag en interacties tussen medeplegers
de netwerkposities van plegers binnen een medeplegersnetwerk beïnvloeden. Aan de hand van drie
multinomiale logistische regressies op politiedata (n = 1,693 plegers), werd nagegaan in welke mate
gewelddadig gedrag en kenmerken van medeplegers de centraliteit en het belang van plegers in het
netwerk beïnvloeden. De belangrijkste bevindingen toonden aan dat plegers die voornamelijk
gewelddadige feiten pleegden een hogere waarschijnlijkheid hadden om minder centraal te worden,
terwijl ernstig geweld de prominente positie van plegers kon versterken. Daarnaast nam het belang
van plegers toe als ze medepleegden met individuen in intermediaire posities, terwijl zij die uitsluitend
medepleegden met gewelddadige personen meer instabiliteit in hun netwerkpositie ondervonden.
Deze resultaten benadrukken de rol van zowel gewelddadig gedrag als interacties tussen medeplegers
in het vormgeven van netwerkposities van plegers.
Samenvattend bieden de bevindingen van dit proefschrift inzicht in de verspreiding van fysiek
gewelddadig pleeggedrag binnen medeplegersnetwerken. Door zowel structurele als interpersoonlijke
dynamieken te onderzoeken, draagt dit onderzoek bij aan het begrip van de mechanismen die de
overdracht van geweld bevorderen. De resultaten benadrukken de cruciale rol van netwerktopologie
en tonen aan hoe specifieke posities binnen een medeplegersnetwerk de verspreiding van geweld
kunnen bevorderen of belemmeren. Daarnaast onderstreept het onderzoek het belang van de aard
van criminele relaties tussen plegers. De wisselwerking tussen structurele en interpersoonlijke
dynamieken toont ook aan hoe netwerkposities gevormd kunnen worden door criminele interacties.
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Dit doctoraatsonderzoek levert zo een omvattend kader voor het bestuderen van de verspreiding van
gewelddadig pleeggedrag en opent perspectieven voor toekomstig onderzoek. Verder biedt het
aanknopingspunten voor interventies die gericht zijn op het onderbreken van de overdracht van geweld binnen criminele netwerken
Psychogeography in the twenty-first century : embodiment and the city
No full textPsychogeography in the Twenty-First Century: Embodiment and the City offers an updated and comprehensive study of urban practice through the intersections of urbanity, sociology, politics, aesthetics, and the sciences. Building on foundational texts such as Merlin Coverley’s work, this study highlights contemporary methodologies that reflect the diverse backgrounds and embodied experiences of psychogeographers in urban environments. Its examination of recent works of key figures, including Laura Oldfield Ford, Nicola White Mudlark, Priti Pandurangan, and McKenzie Wark, emphasizes their intentional use of digital technologies, online platforms and exhibitions to share détourné artifacts (e.g., writings, photographs, drawings, and maps, as demonstrated at the Fourth World Congress of Psychogeography) as counter-narratives to institutionalized portrayals of the city. In doing so, Psychogeography in the Twenty-First Century also underscores the significance of multimodality and transmediality in representing the complex urban experiences of psychogeographers from intersectional and marginalized backgrounds. Furthermore, it highlights the affective impact of the works on recipients, triggering multiple senses and offering new insights into urban life and embodied experiences of the city. This connection to embodied cognition is explored further through the introduction of the concept of psychogeographical literary moments (pace Tan 2023; also forthcoming by Bloomsbury Academic), which expands the discussion of psychogeography beyond its traditional boundaries. This inclusion cements the role of psychogeography in contemporary works, as English scholars have noted its centrality in contemporary British fiction, though often without fully addressing the hows and whys. By incorporating examples from texts like Monica Ali’s Brick Lane and Anna Burns’s Milkman, this formal introduction of psychogeographical literary moments clarifies narrative techniques and themes connected to the ethos of the urban practice in British fiction published since 2000. In addition, it illuminates the embodied lived experiences not just of characters, but also of readers, with the latter demonstrating the real-life effects of psychogeographical literary moments on people’s beliefs and behaviour in the post-reading phase. By integrating concepts from embodied cognition, Psychogeography in the Twenty-First Century offers an up-to-date understanding of the urban practice’s role in shaping the processes of sense-making and identity formation. In doing so, it positions contemporary psychogeography as a powerful social tool that bridges the divide especially between the sciences and aesthetics
Bayesian inference of tungsten impurity transport in fusion plasmas
No full textKernfusiereacties vereisen de verhitting van de brandstof tot extreem hoge temperaturen, tot in de plasmatoestand. Een dergelijk heet plasma kan worden opgesloten met behulp van sterke magnetische velden. Hoewel de wandcomponenten in een fusiemachine met magnetische opsluiting vrij goed bestand zijn tegen de hoge warmtebelasting vanuit het plasma, kunnen toch deeltjes van de wand terechtkomen als onzuiverheden in het plasma. Zware onzuiverheden zoals wolfraam kunnen zodanig veel energie wegstralen dat de fusiereacties stilvallen. Dit doctoraatsonderzoek heeft als doel inzicht te verwerven in de verspreiding van wolfraamdeeltjes doorheen het plasma, gebaseerd op metingen van zachte X-stralen en bolometrie, gecombineerd met temperatuur- en dichtheidsmetingen. Hiervoor werden tomografische technieken ontwikkeld met behulp van Bayesiaanse probabilistische methodes en Gaussiaanse processen. De methode is uitgebreid getest met synthetische data, om vervolgens met succes toegepast te worden op twee fusiemachines van het type "tokamak", nl. WEST in Frankrijk en HL-2A in China. Dankzij dit onderzoek zijn, voor de eerste maal, beelden bekomen van de onzuiverheden in het plasma, inclusief foutenschattingen, gebaseerd op metingen van meerdere diagnostieken. Dit is een essentiële stap vooruit op het gebied van de controle van fusieplasma's voor energieopwekking
Vrouwelijke heiligen in de late oudheid : bewonderd, begeerd, begrensd
No full textIn de late oudheid werden heilige vrouwen bewonderd als religieuze rolmodellen. Tegelijk getuigen literaire bronnen uit dit tijdperk van vrouwelijke heiligen die traditionele gendernormen uitdagen. Van beeldschone martelaressen tot androgyne monniken: wat zeggen deze verhalen over vrouw-zijn in de vroegchristelijke wereld, en droegen ze werkelijk een positief vrouwbeeld uit
Hydrogeological, hydrogeophysical and hydrochemical characterization of the Dupi Tila Aquifer in Dhaka City, Bangladesh
No full textUnplanned and fast urbanization has remarkably aggravated groundwater depletion in Dhaka city, the capital of Bangladesh. This PhD research addressed an integrated approach, combining hydrogeological structure analysis, environmental geophysics, groundwater dynamics, hydrochemistry and groundwater flow modeling, to characterize Dupi Tila aquifer in Dhaka city. Three consecutive semi-confined subdivisions of Dupi Tila aquifer have been identified: the Upper Dupi Tila aquifer (UDA), Middle Dupi Tila aquifer (MDA) and Lower Dupi Tila aquifer (LDA). In 2018, the piezometric level has dropped to depths lower than −85 and −65 m Public Works Department reference datum in UDA and MDA, respectively. Hydrogeochemical data suggested that the waters are mainly of Ca/Mg-HCO3 type and groundwater quality is good as potable water. The weathering of aluminosilicates controls the concentration of the major ions in groundwater. This integrated study suggested that there is no evidence of groundwater recharge through direct bank infiltration from the river. A groundwater flow model suggested that currently, pumping rates are largely exceeding the natural recharge, and the surrounding rivers are mainly irrigating and cross-border inflow from the surroundings increased, and water released from storage is also elevated. Thus, a longer time period of stabilization is needed to obtain an equilibrium
Political participation on social media : a multi-perspective inquiry into its occurrence, underlying mechanisms and associated political behaviours
No full textPolitical participation, broadly referring to citizens’ engagement in activities aimed at influencing government institutions, policies, or patterns of social behaviour, is a key aspect of a healthy democracy. Such behaviours can also occur online, where citizens can benefit from reduced participation costs due to the characteristics of the internet. Sending an email to a politician or signing an online petition are examples of such online participation, as they offer a low-cost alternative to already established forms of offline political participation. The central focus of this dissertation lies with forms of political participation that are uniquely enabled by the internet, and more particularly, by social media. Political participation occurring on social media is shaped by the unique characteristics of these digital networks, arguably creating an entirely new way of participating altogether. The forms in which these behaviours emerge are manifold, think of changing your profile picture to draw attention to a societal problem, sharing a petition with your Facebook friends, taking a stance on a political issue on Instagram, or using a political hashtag in your tweets. Over the past decade, increasing literature has come to recognize the relevance and distinct character of social media political participation. What makes these acts different from other types of political participation is their reliance on self-motivated expression and personalization, and the possibilities for mobilization and collective identity formation.
Despite the proliferation of user- and audience-based research on social media in communication sciences and the prominence of studies on citizen participation in political sciences, current understandings of citizens’ political participation on social media remain
fairly limited. Because these behaviours have rarely been studied as an independent mode of political participation, we know very little about which different participatory practices exist on social media, how they can be explained and how they relate to other, offline forms of political participation. Based on these identified limitations, the main aim of this dissertation is to gain a more profound understanding of political participation that is occurring on social media. Specifically, we aim to investigate how and why citizens engage in social media political participation, and how these behaviours are embedded in citizens’ broader political participation habits (i.e., political repertoires). In order to do so, three specific research objectives are formulated: (1) to develop and validate a theoretically grounded measuring instrument for social media political participation; (2) to investigate the specific communicative and cognitive processes that underly citizens’ individual social media political participation; and (3) to examine how social media political participation is associated with other modes of political participation, both within citizens’ political repertoires (a) as in terms of their antecedents (b).
The core of the dissertation consists of five chapters that each represent separate empirical research articles. Each of the studies on which the articles are based, relies on quantitative research methods. A quantitative research approach aligns with the identified research aims, as they are explicitly related to the quantitative operationalization of social media political participation on the one hand (RO1), and the testing of specific relationships between different modes of political participation and their hypothesized antecedents on the other (RO2 and RO3). Our research design consisted of a multi-phase scale development study to tackle our first research objective, followed by multiple quantitative survey studies to tackle our second and third research objective. Each of the survey studies differed from each other in terms of the employed data collection, sampling and/or data analysis method. Moreover, our research objectives were addressed by applying multiple theoretical perspectives, combining established political participation literature with scholarship on emerging citizenship norms and participation habits, new media affordances, local (online) community development, and communication mediation theory.
The findings of this dissertation indicate that social media political participation concerns a complex mode of political participation, consisting of different subtypes of behaviour. First, this more nuanced understanding of political participation on social media highlights the importance of paying attention to various ‘small acts of engagement’ within audience studies and acknowledging the particular affordances that shape them. Second, we found evidence for the fact that social media political participation is indeed a conceptually and empirically distinct mode of participation, when studied across different populations, contexts and platforms. Third, our findings show that various cognitive processes that are usually associated with offline political participation (e.g., political interest, internal political efficacy, political grievances) also explain citizens’ engagement in social media political participation. Simultaneously, political participation on social media was also associated with particular cognitions that are specifically tailored to the social media context (e.g., psychological embeddedness in local online communities, belief in the political value of social media). Fourth, we found that established communication mechanisms (i.e., news consumption and interpersonal political conversation) stimulate citizens’ engagement in social media political participation. We were also able to show that these mobilizing features remain, even when studied both in a multi-platform news environment (i.e., the importance of the presence and use of multiple media and technologies for news) and a localized media context (i.e., the role of online neighbourhood networks). Finally, this research addressed the association between social media political participation and other, offline forms of participation. Not only did we find that social media participation often co-exists with other participatory modes, we also found evidence for the occurrence of online-only political participation. Similarly, across our studies, the mechanisms explaining social media participation were often similar to those of offline participation, while some unique pathways towards social media action were also uncovered (e.g., in terms of socio-demographics and platform-related cognitions). The latter suggests how social media might provide an additional political outlet for some citizens, who would otherwise refrain from taking action or might take longer to become mobilized. Overall, this dissertation has shed light on the mechanisms underlying social media political participation, with our results pointing to both the political nature of these behaviours (due to its association with established antecedents of offline political participation) and their unique, networked character (given its association with several cognitions and communication mechanisms tailored to the specific social media context).
In conclusion, based on the findings of this dissertation, we can state that social media have given rise to a diverse and distinct set of participatory behaviours and have taken up an increasingly important role within current political participation habits, both complementing, diversifying and expanding citizens’ engagement in politics. Based on these findings, we suggest that policy makers acknowledge citizen participation emerging in these digital spaces and integrate them in a broader process of reconnecting citizens with their representatives. In addition, educational efforts could be made to integrate civic literacy with media literacy initiatives. Here, specific attention could be paid to stimulate critical evaluations of news and online content (i.e., news literacy), but also to encourage empowered and creative uses of digital media for political purposes. Finally, we argue that policy makers should not be dismissive of what happens online, as these behaviours are rarely isolated from offline participation. Ignoring political participation and community formation in an online context might also pose a threat to current democracies, given the potential risks of online polarization