As low-voter-turnout continues to be a concern for the political system in the U.S., the idea online voting platforms (OVPs), to reduce access and use barriers, has been debated. Lowlevel elections in several states across the country have experimented with OVPs through U.S.based internet voting organization, Everyone Counts. These experiments resulted in both the confirmation of perceived benefits and problems. Surveying 196 U.S. citizens through Survey Sampling International, this study garnered respondents' feelings toward several factors correlated with voter-turnout, and the likelihood of adopting OVPs. Using the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Technology Use Model to frame the analysis, the data were analyzed using ols regression. I predicted that citizens would perceive OVPs as an improvement to the current system, and consequently, voter-turnout would increase if OVPs were available, especially among younger citizens (ages 18-44). The analyses illustrated that OVPs would not have a large impact on voter-turnout, and for some would even discourage participation. Furthermore, it was older respondents (ages 44+) who had a stronger positive correlation between effort expectancy and feeling empowered. I conclude by suggesting that low-voter-turnout might be best combated through efforts to improve political efficacy, and that accessibility to poll booths only accounts some of the story. / Master of Science / As fewer citizens in the U.S. vote in presidential elections, online voting platforms (OVPs) have been suggested as a way to increase accessibility and make voting less difficult to do. Local and state elections in several states across the country have experimented with OVPs through U.S.-based internet voting organization, Everyone Counts. These experiments resulted in both the confirmation of perceived benefits and problems. Surveying 196 U.S. citizens through Survey Sampling International, this study<sup>2</sup> sought out respondents’ feelings toward several factors correlated with voter-turnout, and the likelihood of adopting OVPs. A technology adoption theory, the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Technology Use, was used to frame the analysis. I predicted that citizens would perceive OVPs as an improvement to the current voting system, and consequently, more citizens would vote if OVPs were available, especially among younger citizens (ages 18-44). The analyses illustrated that OVPs would not have a large impact on voter-turnout, and would even discourage voting for some. I conclude by suggesting that lowvoter-turnout might be best combated through efforts to improve political efficacy, and that accessibility to poll booths only accounts some of the story.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VTETD/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/73746 |
| Date | 20 December 2016 |
| Creators | Comer, C. Cozette |
| Contributors | Sociology, Hawdon, James E., Polanah, Paulo S., Brunsma, David L. |
| Publisher | Virginia Tech |
| Source Sets | Virginia Tech Theses and Dissertation |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | ETD, application/pdf, application/pdf |
| Rights | In Copyright, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
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