Savvy and Woke: How Filipino Youth Use Social Media for Gender Justice

Article information

Dayrit, J. C. S., Albao, B. T., & Cleofas, J. V. (2022). Savvy and woke: Gender, digital profile, social media competence, and political participation in gender issues among young Filipino netizens. Frontiers in Sociology, 7, 966878. https://doi.org/10.3389/fsoc.2022.966878

What this study is about

Social media has become one of the main spaces where young people learn about, discuss, and act on social issues. In the Philippines, this is especially important because Filipinos are among the world’s most active social media users. Gender issues—such as sexism, violence against women, LGBTQ+ rights, and gender equality—are now often debated and mobilized online. 

This study asks: What predicts young Filipinos’ social media political participation in gender issues?

The paper focuses on young Filipino “netizens” aged 18–30 and examines three possible predictors:

1. Gender — sex assigned at birth and sexual orientation/gender identity.
2. Digital profile — number of social media sites used, gadgets owned, and internet quality.
3. Social media competence — how skilled a person is in using, interpreting, creating, and reflecting on social media content. 

The study is framed through two ideas: social identity theory and the resource model of political participation.

Social identity theory suggests that people who belong to marginalized groups may be more motivated to participate in political action related to that identity. In this case, women and LGBTQ+ people may be more engaged in gender-related issues because these issues affect their lives directly. 

The resource model suggests that people participate more when they have the resources to do so. In the online world, these resources include internet access, gadgets, social media platforms, and digital skills. 

Why this matters

The study was conducted in a Philippine context where gender equality has made gains, but also faces major challenges. The article situates the study amid concerns about misogynistic political rhetoric, online gender-based violence, feminist digital movements such as #BabaeAko and #HijaAko, and online LGBTQ+ advocacy during the pandemic. 

For many young people, social media may be one of the most accessible spaces for political engagement. Offline participation can be limited by age, schooling, family expectations, geography, safety, and cultural norms. Online spaces can therefore become alternative venues for “being woke”—that is, becoming aware of injustice and expressing support for social change.

But online participation is not always simple or positive. It can include learning, sharing, organizing, and speaking up—but it can also involve conflict, hostility, and counterproductive behavior. This study is useful because it examines different types of participation, not just whether someone is “active” or “inactive.”

What the researchers did

The researchers conducted a cross-sectional online survey with 1,090 Filipino college netizens aged 18–30. Data were collected through Google Forms, distributed through Facebook and boosted to reach accounts geolocated in the Philippines. 

They measured four types of social media political participation in gender issues (SMPP-GI):

1. Latent engagement — consuming information about gender issues, such as reading or viewing posts.
2. Counter engagement — uncivil or abrasive behaviors done for political reasons, such as negative commenting or misusing information.
3. Follower engagement — supporting or amplifying others’ content, such as liking, sharing, or following gender-related advocacy.
4. Expressive engagement — creating one’s own posts or actions about gender issues. 

The study also measured four domains of social media competence:

• technical usability,
• content interpretation,
• content generation, and
• anticipatory reflection. 

According to Table 1, respondents reported high competence in technical usability, content interpretation, and anticipatory reflection, but only moderate competence in content generation. Meanwhile, their participation in gender issues was mostly low, except for latent engagement, which was moderate. 

What the study found

1) Youth participation in gender issues was low to moderate

The respondents were not highly active across all forms of gender-related online participation. They were most engaged in latent engagement—reading, viewing, or consuming information about gender issues. Their counter, follower, and expressive engagement scores were lower. 

In plain language: many young people may be watching, reading, or learning about gender issues online, but fewer are actively posting, amplifying, or directly engaging.

2) Gender identity mattered

Female respondents showed higher latent and follower engagement compared with male respondents. LGBTQ+ respondents showed higher latent, follower, and expressive engagement compared with cisheterosexual respondents. 

This supports the idea that people more directly affected by gender inequality are more likely to participate in gender-related political discussions and movements.

One of the most interesting findings involved respondents with non-disclosed SOGI. Those who chose not to disclose their sexual orientation and/or gender identity showed higher scores across all types of SMPP-GI. 

This is important: participation in gender activism does not always require public disclosure of identity. Some young people may stay private about their SOGI while still actively engaging in online gender advocacy. Online political participation can therefore be both visible and protected, expressive and cautious.

3) Digital profile mattered, but only partly

The number of social media sites used predicted some forms of participation. Young people using more platforms showed higher latent engagement, likely because they encounter more information across different platforms. 

Interestingly, using fewer social media sites was linked with higher counter engagement. The authors suggest that being concentrated in fewer platforms may increase echo-chamber dynamics, where users encounter narrower viewpoints and more polarizing forms of engagement. 

Gadgets owned and internet quality did not significantly predict the participation outcomes in the models.

4) Content generation was the strongest and most consistent predictor

The clearest finding is this: content generation predicted all four types of social media political participation in gender issues. 

This means that young people who are better at creating social media content—text, visuals, posts, videos, or other forms of expression—are more likely to participate in gender-related political activity online.

In everyday terms: digital activism is not only about caring. It is also about knowing how to make content.

5) Reflection and interpretation can reduce harmful engagement

Lower content interpretation was linked with higher counter engagement. Lower anticipatory reflection was also linked with higher counter engagement. This suggests that weaker information literacy and less reflection before acting may contribute to more abrasive or uncivil forms of online participation. 

Interestingly, higher anticipatory reflection was also linked with lower expressive engagement. The authors suggest that young people who think carefully about consequences may hesitate to publicly post about gender issues because they anticipate backlash, conflict, or loss of relationships. 

Bottom line

This study shows that online gender activism among Filipino youth is shaped by both identity and skill. Young women, LGBTQ+ youth, and those who do not disclose their SOGI may be especially engaged in gender issues online. But participation also depends on digital competence—especially the ability to generate content.

The key message: to build healthier and more effective “woke” culture online, young people need not only passion for justice, but also skills in content creation, information interpretation, reflection, and safe participation. 

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Policy/practice recommendations

1. Teach content creation for gender advocacy
   Schools, youth groups, and NGOs can train young people to create clear, ethical, visually engaging, and evidence-based content on gender equality. Content generation was the strongest predictor across all forms of SMPP-GI. 
2. Build information literacy to reduce counter engagement
   Programs should help youth interpret online content critically, check sources, identify misinformation, and avoid harmful or abrasive participation.
3. Protect youth who participate without disclosing identity
   Gender advocacy spaces should allow anonymous, pseudonymous, or privacy-protective forms of participation, especially for LGBTQ+ youth or those not ready to disclose their SOGI publicly. 
4. Move youth from passive awareness to meaningful action
   Since latent engagement was higher than other forms, educators and advocates can design pathways from learning → sharing → dialogue → organizing → offline or institutional action.
5. Promote reflective digital activism
   Before posting, sharing, or commenting, young people should be encouraged to ask: What is my goal? Who might be harmed? Is this accurate? Is this the most constructive way to engage?
6. Create safer online gender justice spaces
   Universities, student groups, and civil society organizations should moderate online discussions to reduce harassment, protect vulnerable participants, and encourage respectful disagreement.

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Glossary of key terms

• Social media political participation (SMPP) — Political or civic actions done through social media, such as reading, sharing, commenting, creating posts, or joining online campaigns. 
• SMPP-GI — Social media political participation in gender issues; this study’s specific focus on online participation related to gender equality, sexism, LGBTQ+ rights, and related concerns. 
• Latent engagement — More passive political participation, such as consuming or following information about gender issues.
• Counter engagement — Uncivil or abrasive online political behavior, such as negative commenting or misusing information for a cause.
• Follower engagement — Supporting and amplifying others’ political content, such as liking, sharing, or following advocacy posts.
• Expressive engagement — Creating one’s own content or posts about gender issues.
• Social media competence — A person’s ability to use social media effectively and responsibly, including technical use, interpretation, content creation, and reflection. 
• Content generation — The ability to create original text, visual, or multimedia social media content. This was the most consistent predictor of participation in the study. 
• Content interpretation — The ability to understand, evaluate, and make sense of social media content.
• Anticipatory reflection — Thinking about possible consequences before posting, sharing, or engaging online.
• SOGI — Sexual orientation and gender identity.
• Cisheterosexual — A person who is both cisgender and heterosexual.
• LGBTQ+ — A broad term for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other sexual and gender minority identities.
• Non-disclosed SOGI — A category used in the study for respondents who preferred not to disclose sexual orientation and/or gender identity. 
• Social identity theory — A theory suggesting that group membership shapes identity and can motivate political action.
• Resource model of political participation — A theory suggesting that participation depends partly on available resources, including time, skills, tools, and access.