Development consensus in the Internet context: penetration, freedom, and participation in 38 countries

Abstract

The decline of public consensus is often linked to the rise of the Internet. Conceptualizing the Internet as a context, this paper explores its impacts on public consensus on development. The data of the World Values Survey were used for multilevel analyses with 58,926 respondents in 38 countries. It reported three counterbalances. First, Internet penetration weakens public consensus on development, but promotes the individual use of the Internet, which strengthens public consensus on development. Second, Internet freedom and Internet participation contribute to a robust online democracy, which buffers the informational impact of Internet penetration. Third, public consensus on development is nurtured in a context where Internet freedom serves as an instrument to protect an open, free public sphere, but is fragmented by a country’s overall ideological orientation towards freedom.