Family communication patterns, media literacy and civic engagement: A study with Indonesian college students

Patmisari, Ahmad Muhibbin, Yeniar Elka Pramesiana, Marisa Zakiya Amini, Wibowo Heru Prasetiyo, Sri Gunarsi and Achmad Muthali'in
Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta, Indonesia

Understanding the level of media literacy among college students has become increasingly important amid the spread of disinformation or 'fake news' on social media. Currently, the Internet and social media are used to find information and news to participate in better civic engagement in Indonesia. In this study, we hypothesised that family communication, which consists of conversation orientation and conformity orientation, affects civic engagement among young people. A questionnaire designed to test this hypothesis received 330 valid responses that were analysed using structural equation modelling (SEM) and partial least squares (PLS). The findings showed that media literacy was the most significant predictor of civic engagement. We recommend increased attention to media literacy education in Indonesia, and see scope for similar studies in other democratic societies that have high Internet use.
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Authors: Patmisari (corresponding author) is a lecturer in the Department of Civic Education, Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta, Indonesia. Her research is focused on citizenship education and political education. Email: pat179@ums.ac.id Dr Ahmad Muhibbin is a senior lecturer at the Civic Education Department, Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta, Indonesia. His areas of research expertise include character education, citizenship education, and educational management. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2528-1833 Email: am215@ums.ac.id Wibowo Heru Prasetiyo is a lecturer in the Department of Civic Education, Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta, Indonesia. His research is focused on character education, citizenship education, ecological citizenship, and digital citizenship. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9146-063X Email: whp823@ums.ac.id Dr Sri Gunarsi is a senior lecturer at the Civic Education Department, Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta, Indonesia. Her areas of research expertise include citizenship education and sociology of law. Email: sg219@ums.ac.id Yeniar Elka Pramesiana is a student in the Department of Civic Education, Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta, Indonesia. Email: yeniarelka@gmail.com Marisa Zakiya Amini is a student in the Department of Civic Education, Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta, Indonesia. Email: marisazakiyyaami@gmail.com Achmad Muthali'in is a senior lecturer at the Civic Education Department, Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta, Indonesia. His areas of research expertise include character education, citizenship education, and multicultural education. Email: am244@ums.ac.id Please cite as: Patmisari, Muhibbin, A., Pramesiana, Y. E., Amini, M. Z., Prasetiyo, Gunarsi, S. & Muthali'in (2022). Family communication patterns, media literacy and civic engagement: A study with Indonesian college students. Issues in Educational Research, 32(3), 1067-1091. http://www.iier.org.au/iier32/patmisari.pdf