How independent politicians in a two-party system influence political framing: An epistemic network analysis of independent Australian MPs on Twitter

Alex Henry; Ward Peeters

How independent politicians in a two-party system influence political framing: An epistemic network analysis of independent Australian MPs on Twitter

Alex Henry
, Ward Peeters

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference Paper › Other › peer-review

Abstract

This study investigates how Independent Members of the Australian House of Representatives (N= 10) used Twitter to frame political discourse in the year following the last Federal Election. As Independents have seen a rise in popularity in Australian politics, their digital communication strategies offer insights into how non-party actors frame issues and influence the political agenda. Combining thematic analysis and Epistemic Network Analysis (ENA), this research shows that Independents in Australian national politics can be subdivided into two dominant epistemic frames, a Climate-Integrity frame linked to the so-called ‘Teal’Independents, and a Community-Governance frame, associated with grassroots Members of Parliament. This work highlights the value of ENA for understanding online political discourse and provides insights into how Independents influence political narratives in contemporary Australian politics.

Original language	English
Title of host publication	Advances in Quantitative Ethnography
Subtitle of host publication	7th International Conference, ICQE 2025, Mexico City, Mexico, October 11–16, 2025, Proceedings
Editors	Guadalupe Carmona, Cynthia Lima, Maria Josefa Santos, Héctor Benítez, Luis Montero-Moguel, Beatriz Galarza-Tohen
Place of Publication	Cham Switzerland
Publisher	Springer
Pages	70-74
Number of pages	5
ISBN (Electronic)	9783032122292
Publication status	Published - 12 Oct 2025
Event	International Conference on Quantitative Ethnography 2025 - Mexico City, Mexico Duration: 11 Oct 2025 → 16 Oct 2025 Conference number: 7th https://www.qesoc.org/icqe25/ https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-032-12229-2

Publication series

Name	Communications in Computer and Information Science
Publisher	Springer

Conference

Conference	International Conference on Quantitative Ethnography 2025
Abbreviated title	ICQE 2025
Country/Territory	Mexico
City	Mexico City
Period	11/10/25 → 16/10/25
Internet address	https://www.qesoc.org/icqe25/ https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-032-12229-2

Cite this

Henry, A., & Peeters, W. (2025). How independent politicians in a two-party system influence political framing: An epistemic network analysis of independent Australian MPs on Twitter. In G. Carmona, C. Lima, M. J. Santos, H. Benítez, L. Montero-Moguel, & B. Galarza-Tohen (Eds.), Advances in Quantitative Ethnography: 7th International Conference, ICQE 2025, Mexico City, Mexico, October 11–16, 2025, Proceedings (pp. 70-74). (Communications in Computer and Information Science). Springer.

Henry, Alex ; Peeters, Ward. / How independent politicians in a two-party system influence political framing : An epistemic network analysis of independent Australian MPs on Twitter. Advances in Quantitative Ethnography: 7th International Conference, ICQE 2025, Mexico City, Mexico, October 11–16, 2025, Proceedings. editor / Guadalupe Carmona ; Cynthia Lima ; Maria Josefa Santos ; Héctor Benítez ; Luis Montero-Moguel ; Beatriz Galarza-Tohen. Cham Switzerland : Springer, 2025. pp. 70-74 (Communications in Computer and Information Science).

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title = "How independent politicians in a two-party system influence political framing: An epistemic network analysis of independent Australian MPs on Twitter",

abstract = "This study investigates how Independent Members of the Australian House of Representatives (N= 10) used Twitter to frame political discourse in the year following the last Federal Election. As Independents have seen a rise in popularity in Australian politics, their digital communication strategies offer insights into how non-party actors frame issues and influence the political agenda. Combining thematic analysis and Epistemic Network Analysis (ENA), this research shows that Independents in Australian national politics can be subdivided into two dominant epistemic frames, a Climate-Integrity frame linked to the so-called {\textquoteleft}Teal{\textquoteright}Independents, and a Community-Governance frame, associated with grassroots Members of Parliament. This work highlights the value of ENA for understanding online political discourse and provides insights into how Independents influence political narratives in contemporary Australian politics.",

author = "Alex Henry and Ward Peeters",

year = "2025",

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editor = "Guadalupe Carmona and Cynthia Lima and Santos, \{Maria Josefa \} and Ben{\'i}tez, \{H{\'e}ctor \} and Montero-Moguel, \{Luis \} and Galarza-Tohen, \{Beatriz \}",

booktitle = "Advances in Quantitative Ethnography",

address = "Switzerland",

note = "International Conference on Quantitative Ethnography 2025, ICQE 2025 ; Conference date: 11-10-2025 Through 16-10-2025",

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Henry, A & Peeters, W 2025, How independent politicians in a two-party system influence political framing: An epistemic network analysis of independent Australian MPs on Twitter. in G Carmona, C Lima, MJ Santos, H Benítez, L Montero-Moguel & B Galarza-Tohen (eds), Advances in Quantitative Ethnography: 7th International Conference, ICQE 2025, Mexico City, Mexico, October 11–16, 2025, Proceedings. Communications in Computer and Information Science, Springer, Cham Switzerland, pp. 70-74, International Conference on Quantitative Ethnography 2025, Mexico City, Mexico, 11/10/25.

How independent politicians in a two-party system influence political framing: An epistemic network analysis of independent Australian MPs on Twitter. / Henry, Alex; Peeters, Ward.
Advances in Quantitative Ethnography: 7th International Conference, ICQE 2025, Mexico City, Mexico, October 11–16, 2025, Proceedings. ed. / Guadalupe Carmona; Cynthia Lima; Maria Josefa Santos; Héctor Benítez; Luis Montero-Moguel; Beatriz Galarza-Tohen. Cham Switzerland: Springer, 2025. p. 70-74 (Communications in Computer and Information Science).

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference Paper › Other › peer-review

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T1 - How independent politicians in a two-party system influence political framing

T2 - International Conference on Quantitative Ethnography 2025

AU - Henry, Alex

AU - Peeters, Ward

N1 - Conference code: 7th

PY - 2025/10/12

Y1 - 2025/10/12

N2 - This study investigates how Independent Members of the Australian House of Representatives (N= 10) used Twitter to frame political discourse in the year following the last Federal Election. As Independents have seen a rise in popularity in Australian politics, their digital communication strategies offer insights into how non-party actors frame issues and influence the political agenda. Combining thematic analysis and Epistemic Network Analysis (ENA), this research shows that Independents in Australian national politics can be subdivided into two dominant epistemic frames, a Climate-Integrity frame linked to the so-called ‘Teal’Independents, and a Community-Governance frame, associated with grassroots Members of Parliament. This work highlights the value of ENA for understanding online political discourse and provides insights into how Independents influence political narratives in contemporary Australian politics.

AB - This study investigates how Independent Members of the Australian House of Representatives (N= 10) used Twitter to frame political discourse in the year following the last Federal Election. As Independents have seen a rise in popularity in Australian politics, their digital communication strategies offer insights into how non-party actors frame issues and influence the political agenda. Combining thematic analysis and Epistemic Network Analysis (ENA), this research shows that Independents in Australian national politics can be subdivided into two dominant epistemic frames, a Climate-Integrity frame linked to the so-called ‘Teal’Independents, and a Community-Governance frame, associated with grassroots Members of Parliament. This work highlights the value of ENA for understanding online political discourse and provides insights into how Independents influence political narratives in contemporary Australian politics.

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BT - Advances in Quantitative Ethnography

A2 - Carmona, Guadalupe

A2 - Lima, Cynthia

A2 - Santos, Maria Josefa

A2 - Benítez, Héctor

A2 - Montero-Moguel, Luis

A2 - Galarza-Tohen, Beatriz

PB - Springer

CY - Cham Switzerland

Y2 - 11 October 2025 through 16 October 2025

ER -

Henry A, Peeters W. How independent politicians in a two-party system influence political framing: An epistemic network analysis of independent Australian MPs on Twitter. In Carmona G, Lima C, Santos MJ, Benítez H, Montero-Moguel L, Galarza-Tohen B, editors, Advances in Quantitative Ethnography: 7th International Conference, ICQE 2025, Mexico City, Mexico, October 11–16, 2025, Proceedings. Cham Switzerland: Springer. 2025. p. 70-74. (Communications in Computer and Information Science).

How independent politicians in a two-party system influence political framing: An epistemic network analysis of independent Australian MPs on Twitter

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