Name: Younger people are more likely to see social media as good for democracy than older people
Creator: Pew Research Center
Published: 2026-10-01
License: https://www.pewresearch.org/terms-and-conditions/

A phone displays election result predictions during the second round of the 2024 French legislative elections on July 7, 2024. (Pat Batard/Hans Lucas/AFP via Getty Images)

About this research

This Pew Research Center report looks at views of how social media has impacted democracy in 37 countries, as well as social media use by platform in each place.

Why did we do this?

Pew Research Center does research to help the public, media and decision-makers understand important topics. We study how people around the world feel about their democracies and the impact of social media and other emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI).

Learn more about Pew Research Center and our international surveys.

How did we do this?

We surveyed 42,151 people across 36 countries: Argentina, Australia, Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, France, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Malaysia, Mexico, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, the Philippines, Poland, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Thailand, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Interviews were conducted from Feb. 8 to May 13, 2026. We designed the surveys so we could talk about the views of the adult population in each country.

For this report, data from the United States comes from two surveys. We surveyed 3,507 U.S. adults from March 23 to 29, 2026. Everyone who took part in this survey is a member of the Center’s American Trends Panel. Additionally, we surveyed 5,511 U.S. adults from Jan. 30 to June 18, 2026 as part of the National Public Opinion Reference Survey (NPORS). These surveys represent the views of the full U.S. adult population.

Here are the survey questions used for this report, along with responses, and the survey methodology.

As social media platforms have become an important part of the information environment around the world, the view that social media is harming democracy has become more common.

A new 37-nation Pew Research Center survey finds that in most countries where trend data is available, the share of the public who believes social media is bad for democracy has increased significantly from 2022 or 2023 to now.

Views about social media’s impact are particularly negative in the United States, where 64% of adults say it is bad for democracy. However, while assessments have become more negative in many countries, American attitudes are unchanged since 2022. In some ways, other nations are catching up with the U.S. when it comes to seeing social media’s downsides. (For more, read “Americans Are Negative About Social Media’s Impact on Democracy – and the Rest of the World Is Catching Up.”)

In general, people in wealthier nations such as the U.S. are more likely to believe social media is harming democracy. The seven nations where half or more say social media has been bad for democracy are also among the wealthiest surveyed: Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the U.S. However, Israel and Singapore are exceptions – relatively few in these two high-income countries believe social media is bad for democracy.

In nations with lower gross domestic products per capita, people tend to be less negative about social media. For example, in Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, the Philippines and Thailand, roughly three-in-four or more say it has been good for democracy.

In most countries polled, this positive view is predominant. Across the 37 nations surveyed, a median of 55% think social media has had a positive impact on democracy, while a median of 35% say it has had a negative one.

Young adults in most nations are especially likely to believe social media has a positive effect on democracy. One of the largest age gaps is found in the U.K., where 60% of adults ages 18 to 34 say social media’s influence on democracy has been good, compared with just 31% of those ages 50 and older. In the U.S., 44% of adults younger than 35 hold this view, compared with 28% of people 50 and older.

Why do so many people think online platforms have been good for democracy? Part of the answer may be that these platforms give people a voice at time when many feel voiceless. A median of 60% in the 37 countries surveyed say access to the internet and social media has increased people’s ability to have a meaningful voice in politics.

And access to the internet and social media can inform people about current events: A median of 77% think it has led people to be more informed.

At the same time, people are certainly aware of social media’s pernicious effects. A median of 79% believe it has made it easier to manipulate people with false information and 68% say it has made people more divided in their political opinions.

The perception that social media has amplified political divisions has become more common in several nations, including by double-digit increases in Poland, Germany, France, Japan, Spain, the U.K., Hungary and Malaysia. (Since 2024, we have conducted our surveys in Hungary and Poland by phone; we previously conducted our surveys face-to-face.)

The U.S. is one of 10 countries where roughly eight-in-ten or more of those polled say access to the internet and social media has made people more politically divided. The share of Americans who hold this view today (81%) is similar to the share in 2022 (79%).

There are no significant partisan differences on this question in the U.S.: 83% of Republicans and independents who lean toward the Republican Party say social media amplifies political divisions, as do 82% of Democrats and Democratic-leaners.

The survey also finds that the social media platforms people use vary across the globe, although Facebook tends to be the most common among the five we asked about, followed by Instagram. Many – especially young people – also say they use TikTok, while fewer overall use X (formerly known as Twitter) or Snapchat.

For more, read “Social Media Platform Use Around the World.”

For this report, we surveyed 45,658 people in 37 countries from Feb. 8 to May 13, 2026. Additional data on Americans’ social media platform use comes from a survey of 5,511 adults conducted from Jan. 30 to June 18, 2026.

Jump to the sections below for more:

• Is social media good or bad for democracy?
• Social media can manipulate and divide, but also inform and give people a voice
• Young adults, people with more education and those who use more platforms are more positive about social media’s impact

Majorities in most countries say social media has been more of a good thing for democracy. Most Canadians and Americans, however, offer a negative assessment.

In Europe, there are a variety of views. Poles, Italians and Greeks tend to see social media’s impact positively, while majorities in the U.K. Germany, France and the Netherlands say it has been bad for democracy.

People in the Asia-Pacific nations surveyed tend to believe social media has had a positive impact on democracy. In Thailand, Singapore, the Philippines and Malaysia, roughly seven-in-ten or more express this opinion. Still, 52% of Australians and 43% in both Japan and Indonesia take the opposite view.

At least half of adults in all the Middle Eastern, African and Latin American nations surveyed believe social media’s impact has been positive. Chile is the only nation surveyed in any of these regions where at least four-in-ten say it has been bad for democracy.

People believe social media has had both positive and negative influences on their country’s politics and its information environment.

Majorities in all 37 countries surveyed think access to the internet and social media has made people more informed about current events. And roughly half or more in every country think these technologies have given people the ability to have a more meaningful voice in politics.

However, majorities in all countries – and overwhelming majorities in many high-income nations as defined by World Bank lending groups – also say access to the internet and social media has made it easier for people to be manipulated by false information and rumors. And roughly half or more in every nation say access has made people more politically divided.

Looking across the two positive and two negative effects asked about on the survey, some believe social media is leading to all four. In 29 countries, a third or more of adults hold this view.

Young people are generally more positive than older people about the impact of social media.

For instance, in the U.K., 18- to 34-year-olds are nearly twice as likely as those ages 50 and older to think social media has been a good thing for democracy. And significant gaps by age exist in 23 other countries, including the U.S. Still, less than half (44%) of American adults under age 35 believe social media’s impact on democracy has been positive.

Younger adults are more likely to see both the upsides and downsides of social media. They often say it makes people more informed and able to have a voice in politics, but they’re also more likely to believe it makes people more politically divided and manipulable.

Education follows a similar pattern as age. In some countries, people with higher levels of education tend to be more positive about social media’s impact on democracy, and they are more likely to see both its positive and negative effects.

Young people and those with higher levels of education are more likely to use social media and, in many countries, they tend to use more platforms. And people who use more than three of the platforms included on the survey are generally more likely than those who use fewer platforms to say social media has been good for democracy.

For more on social media use, read “Social Media Platform Use Around the World.”

It is worth noting that on questions about the impact of social media on politics, older people, those with less education and those who do not use any social media platforms are often less likely to offer an opinion.

	Bad thing	Good thing
	35	55

Median % who say access to the internet and social media has made people …
	Less	More	Not had much impact
Informed about current events	11	77	10
Able to have a meaningful voice in politics	14	60	20

Easy to manipulate with false information and rumors	8	79	8
Divided in their political opinions	10	68	16

Country	Ages 18-34	18-34	35-49	50+	Youngest-oldest diff
U.K.	60	60	42	31	+29
India	74	74	69	50	+24
Ghana	79	79	71	56	+23
Thailand	89	89	80	68	+21
Turkey	63	63	63	42	+21
Japan	61	61	59	40	+21
France	44	44	34	24	+20
South Africa	72	72	67	53	+19
Kenya	80	80	71	63	+17
Peru	67	67	59	50	+17
Sri Lanka	63	63	51	46	+17
Australia	55	55	47	39	+16
U.S.	44	44	33	28	+16
Mexico	74	74	72	59	+15
Germany	46	46	41	31	+15
Colombia	68	68	67	55	+13
Singapore	82	82	79	70	+12
Canada	48	48	38	36	+12
Italy	61	61	57	50	+11
Sweden	57	57	48	46	+11
Israel	69	69	70	59	+10
Malaysia	77	77	66	68	+9
Argentina	60	60	57	51	+9

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Regions & Countries

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Across the Globe, People Increasingly Say Social Media Is Harming Democracy

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Country	Date	Good thing	Bad thing
Germany	2026	37	61
Germany	2022	57	41
Japan	2026	48	43
Japan	2022	57	23
Hungary	2026	49	42
Hungary	2022	65	22
Poland	2026	55	35
Poland	2022	67	15
Indonesia	2026	55	43
Indonesia	2023	64	24
Netherlands	2026	27	70
Netherlands	2022	44	54
Sweden	2026	49	47
Sweden	2022	66	32
France	2026	31	65
France	2022	43	51
Spain	2026	49	47
Spain	2022	61	35
U.K.	2026	41	56
U.K.	2022	50	48
Canada	2026	40	55
Canada	2022	49	47
Greece	2026	53	43
Greece	2022	62	35

Hidden GDP per capita	Country	More of a bad thing for democracy	%	GDP per capita	Grouping
90027	U.S.	64	64	$90,026.52	North America
55698	Canada	55	55	$55,697.66	North America
48986	France	65	65	$48,985.73	Europe
60496	Germany	61	61	$60,496.44	Europe
26948	Greece	43	43	$26,948.01	Europe
25907	Hungary	42	42	$25,907.47	Europe
43309	Italy	44	44	$43,308.64	Europe
73684	Netherlands	70	70	$73,683.92	Europe
28420	Poland	35	35	$28,419.58	Europe
38627	Spain	47	47	$38,627.25	Europe
63133	Sweden	47	47	$63,133.21	Europe
57602	U.K.	56	56	$57,601.96	Europe
65130	Australia	52	52	$65,129.72	Asia-Pacific
2597	Bangladesh	28	28	$2,597.34	Asia-Pacific
2702	India	23	23	$2,702.48	Asia-Pacific
5060	Indonesia	43	43	$5,059.63	Asia-Pacific
35951	Japan	43	43	$35,951.04	Asia-Pacific
13125	Malaysia	27	27	$13,124.56	Asia-Pacific
1596	Pakistan	33	33	$1,595.91	Asia-Pacific
4171	Philippines	23	23	$4,170.72	Asia-Pacific
98814	Singapore	22	22	$98,813.98	Asia-Pacific
36227	South Korea	38	38	$36,226.97	Asia-Pacific
5002	Sri Lanka	35	35	$5,002.08	Asia-Pacific
8057	Thailand	21	21	$8,056.56	Asia-Pacific
60337	Israel	22	22	$60,336.85	Middle East
18599	Turkey	35	35	$18,599.44	Middle East
3257	Ghana	21	21	$3,257.16	Sub-Saharan Africa
2363	Kenya	24	24	$2,362.86	Sub-Saharan Africa
1224	Nigeria	11	11	$1,224.25	Sub-Saharan Africa
6598	South Africa	28	28	$6,597.71	Sub-Saharan Africa
14898	Argentina	35	35	$14,898.09	Latin America
10713	Brazil	29	29	$10,713.29	Latin America
17995	Chile	43	43	$17,994.59	Latin America
8562	Colombia	33	33	$8,561.62	Latin America
13889	Mexico	26	26	$13,889.23	Latin America
9684	Peru	34	34	$9,684.41	Latin America

	%
Facebook	69
Instagram	51
TikTok	40
X, formerly known as Twitter	18
Snapchat	18

Across the Globe, People Increasingly Say Social Media Is Harming Democracy

Most think social media leads to manipulation and division, but they also say it informs people and gives them a voice in politics

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Is social media good or bad for democracy?

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Social media and the internet can manipulate and divide, but also inform and empower

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Young adults, people with more education and those who use more platforms see social media more positively

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