Effects of social media usage on political participation of individuals: A research on university students

The main purpose of the study is; To clarify whether the use of social media has an impact on individuals' political views and preferences. In this study, which also deals with the ability of social media platforms to mobilize the masses, the problem is first discussed in the context of media and politics. In this study; It also addresses the issue of whether social media platforms have the power to recreate political structures. The study consists of three parts. In the first part, by focusing on the concept of politics, some definitions are given and the factors affecting political participation are clarified. In the second part; By focusing on the issue of social media, this term is conceptually addressed and its close relationship with politics is tried to be explained. The last part is the research part of the study. Questionnaire application was chosen as the research method. Survey study; It was gathered under four different groups of open-ended questions. If the students participating in the research ie the sample of the research; Gazi University, Istanbul Technical University, Istanbul University, Marmara University, as well as established universities of Turkey's Uludag University were selected from 130 students studying in different universities, including