Copyright © 2026 Authors retain the copyright of this article. This article is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

@article{209381,
        author = {Richa Rajawat and Shreya Dwivedi},
        title = {Memes, Satire and Political Engagement: A Study of Young Social Media Users Just a Joke or a Political Voice?},
        journal = {International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology},
        year = {2026},
        volume = {13},
        number = {5},
        pages = {1693-1708},
        issn = {2349-6002},
        url = {https://ijirt.org/article?manuscript=209381},
        abstract = {Political memes and satire have become an ordinary route through which young social-media users encounter political ideas, personalities and controversies. This study examines how such exposure relates to perceived political engagement among young social-media users aged 18–35, with particular attention to comprehension, peer discussion, information-seeking and perceived misinformation risk. A quantitative, descriptive and analytical cross-sectional survey was conducted using a structured Google Forms questionnaire. The study draws on 86 responses obtained through purposive and convenience sampling, with respondents concentrated in Gwalior and Indore; question-wise valid counts were 84, 85 and 52 where missing responses occurred. The analysis combines frequencies, percentages, means, standard deviations, Spearman rank-order correlations, reliability analysis and an exploratory OLS regression. Political meme exposure was common: 50.0% of valid respondents encountered political memes often or very often, while Instagram was identified by 75.6% of the total sample as the principal exposure platform. At the same time, 76.5% agreed or strongly agreed that political memes can spread misleading or false information. The study also finds that 53.6% associated memes with greater awareness of current political issues, 51.2% found political issues easier to understand through memes, and 63.5% reported discussing political issues with friends after encountering memes or satire. Spearman correlations show positive associations between exposure and awareness, exposure and information-seeking, self-expression and peer discussion, and discussion and perceived contribution to engagement. The exploratory regression explains 42.3% of the variance in perceived contribution to political engagement (R² = .423; adjusted R² = .386), with ease of understanding, discussion with friends and misinformation concern emerging as significant predictors. Exposure itself was not significant once these factors were considered. The findings suggest that political memes are better understood as socially processed communication cues than as simple exposure stimuli. The study contributes to political communication scholarship by connecting uses and gratifications, connective action and a dual-process account of interpretation to an Indian youth sample, showing that political significance depends less on how often a meme is seen than on how it is understood, discussed and critically evaluated.},
        keywords = {political memes, satire, political engagement, social media, young adults, youth participation, political communication, misinformation, media literacy},
        month = {October},
        }