The Observer Affect refers to the emotions one feels toward a candidate and/or their policies. The emotions a candidate produces a wide variety of potential voters varies tremendously. Whether these emotions are positive or negative effects political participation. Negative emotions can effect political participation in two ways. If ones affect is one of anger it prompts them more toward electoral participation, while anxiety prompts a more general political participation. Positive emotions on the other hand have the opposite effect; positive emotions, like hope and enthusiasm, increase the person’s awareness of their surroundings and increases their confidence in the politician and his ideas.
This artifact shows the different types of emotions a person can get during the observer affect. One can feel sad, shocked, happy, disgusted, angry, or terrified. Of course these are not all the emotions a politician can make a person feel; there is a wide variety this artifact just shows some of the potential emotions a person can feel.
The Observer Affect is significant to the study of new media and society because political campaigns are relying more on the internet more and more each election period. Candidates need a way to stay in contact with their potential voters, rather than just addressing them once or twice a month. New media allows the society to see into the life of a candidate and that is important because people need to feel they can trust candidates and relate to them, and the internet allows for that to happen. Interactivity is a huge concept that could be interfaced with the observer affect because depending on how the candidate engages with the people determines their emotion toward him/her.