A New Era of Political Awareness: An Investigation on Young Adults in Finland Concerning Emotions Surrounding Social Media Infographics

This thesis discusses the phenomenon of social media infographics, otherwise known as slideshow or PowerPoint activism, in light of the technological attention economy and the collapse of the traditional news culture of the 21st century. Confronted by an overload of news depicting the tragedies that roam the earth, Generation Z is notoriously known as the generation without a hope for the future. As more initiatives and corporations vie for the attention of young minds, so must the seemingly endless compilations of news. Social media infographics, which take shape as colorful and aesthetic still images of text simplify current events in the interest of raising awareness and help navigate the information overload derived through social media platforms. Whether this indeed helps navigate the difficult terrain of news overload and whether this is relevant to the Finnish context remains somewhat unclear.
To unravel the discussion, this thesis spotlights quantitative research in the form of a survey to young adults between 18 and 30 years old currently living in Finland. Using a feminist research ethic and adopting Hutchison and Bleiker’s theorization of emotion in world politics, this thesis embarks on the impact of such infographics on young adults as per collective identity theory. The results of the survey hint towards a collective identity within young adults in Finland. Furthermore, the results show that young adults feel overwhelmed and hopeless in part through an abundance of news, but that social media infographics cannot be concluded as the main cause. This is because social media infographics are still seen as helpful in navigating and informing about political complex events. Finally, the results show that the collective identity also features a sense or feeling of responsibility to be and stay informed about current events. Nevertheless, this thesis confirms the hopelessness of young adults in Finland and introduces the implications of social media infographics for the peace research field.