With phrases like "binders full of women" and "horses and bayonets" inspiring millions of social media posts and even popular Halloween costumes, there is no doubt that political memes have soared into the popular consciousness this election. But do they have any real impact on voters?
According to Dr. CarrieLynn Reinhard, an assistant professor of communication at Dominican University who studies new media and audience reception, while creating memes has become a popular form of political participation and spreading them a powerful method of reinforcing views held by a particular social network, their persuasive effect on those outside that network is likely limited.
"Memes seem to help people express their frustration with a seemingly corrupt or unresponsive political system, the same way that other forms of political humor help us cope with our democratically elected representatives.
Spreading the memes to a social network that shares the sensibilities of the meme is a way to maintain the social network’s commitment to a particular political position," Reinhard says. "The jokes help you vent, but also help you connect with others, and to reaffirm that you are right to want to vent in the way that you are. But just as you may not find a joke funny or persuasive if it espouses a worldview you are opposed to, you probably will not like and spread a meme for the same reason. Thus, memes are most likely circulating within networks of like-minded individuals; they are not likely to change minds."
Reinhard has written on the phenomenon of political memes that has arisen this political season on her blog, playingwithresearch.com, and is available to discuss the topic with members of the media.
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