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Predicting Instagram usage, online incivility, and online political engagement among Malaysian youth: An extension of UTAUT2

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  • Tak Jie Chan
  • Hin Ying Chua
  • Sheh Chin Foo
  • Miew Luan Ng
  • Miza Izwanis Mangsor

Abstract

Political activities have gone on online means through virtual applications. Past research has been done on social media and online political engagement across several countries, including Malaysia. However, limited literature has investigated online political engagement on Instagram. This study examines Instagram usage attributes that impact Malaysian youths’ online political engagement. This research was driven by the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT2) theory with the expansion of online incivility to fill the academic gap. A quantitative approach (online survey) and purposive sampling were used by distributing online questionnaires to Malaysian youths between 18 and 30 years old who are Instagram users. 170 valid respondents were gathered through Google Forms and were analyze through Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM). The findings showed that social influence, habit, and online incivility are the predictors of online political engagements which support online incivility as a crucial construct that further extends the UTAUT2 theory. However, the effort expectancy, performance expectancy, and facilitating conditions were not the predictors. The study contributed to the political communication scholarship and urged government agencies such as the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) to provide guidelines on handling online incivility and uncivil behavior.

Suggested Citation

  • Tak Jie Chan & Hin Ying Chua & Sheh Chin Foo & Miew Luan Ng & Miza Izwanis Mangsor, 2025. "Predicting Instagram usage, online incivility, and online political engagement among Malaysian youth: An extension of UTAUT2," Humanities and Social Sciences Letters, Conscientia Beam, vol. 13(3), pages 792-807.
    • Handle: RePEc:pkp:hassle:v:13:y:2025:i:3:p:792-807:id:4302
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