IPAD – Italian Parties Digitalization
PRIN 2022: The project is funded by the Italian Ministry of University and Research (MUR) and carried out by a consortium of four universities: University of Naples (Principal Investigator: Marco Valbruzzi), University of Bologna (Local Unit Coordinator: Paola Bordandini), University of Cagliari (Local Unit Coordinator: Stefano Rombi), and University of Turin (Local Unit Coordinator: Antonella Seddone).
Abstract
IPAD (Italian PArties Digitalization) project deals with digitalization among Italian political parties. The spread of digital media such as blogs, social media platforms, mobile apps, and interactive websites has stimulated both the emergence of the so-called digital party, Movimento 5 Stelle, and the gradual digitalization of the traditional mainstream parties. Bringing together the scholarly literature on political communication and political parties, this project aims to fill an important gap in the literature by integrating the digital dimension into the analysis of party organizations. By analyzing data at national and subnational levels, this project aims to provide a detailed understanding of the impact that digitalization has had on parties’ structure and functions so far. More specifically, the five main Italian parties are observed: Forza Italia, Fratelli d’Italia, Lega, Movimento 5 Stelle, and Partito Democratico.
Through a systematic and comparative analysis of the extent to which new technologies have affected party organizations, IPAD aims to provide an accurate, empirical, and grounded understanding of the impacts of digital environments on political parties’ structures and operations. The target is to answer one broad question: Does the digitalization process revamp participation through more open and democratic intraparty processes, thus restoring the fragile and even crumbling relationships between parties and society, or does it produce a top-down, plebiscitary dynamic leading to more atomization and apathy rather than collective mobilization?
RESEARCH FOCUS OF THE BOLOGNA UNIT
Scientific coordination: Paola Bordandini, Piero Ignazi, Luca Pinto
Other members: Anna Napoletano (Post-doc), Giulio Bricoli (Tutor)
Within the broader framework of IPAD, the research unit of the University of Bologna focuses on the role of digitalization in shaping specific party organization attributes. In particular, the research unity will focus on the following issues:
- the role of digital tools in shaping the relationship between national and local party offices
- the role of digital tools in shaping the relationship between elected representatives, middle-level elites, and party members
- the role of digital tools in shaping the relationship between subnational party organizations and local supporters
- the role of digital tools within party youth organizations (membership activities, online discussion, and recruitment).
In sum, the research unit investigates the impact of digitalization on the internal coordination mechanisms of political parties and explores the effects of digitalization and artificial intelligence on the dynamics of authority, control, and information flows.
Methodology
The project adopts a qualitative approach, based on more than 70 semi-structured interviews conducted in Emilia-Romagna, Piedmont, Sardinia, and Campania with local, provincial, regional, and national leaders of Forza Italia, Fratelli d’Italia, Lega, Movimento 5 Stelle, and Partito Democratico. The interviews are currently being analyzed using Qualtrics
Keywords: digitalization, political parties, party organization, political participation, digital parties, digital ideology, intraparty democracy.
Project period: 2023–2026