jhein.net

English: Slacktivism (sometimes slactivism or slackervism) is a portmanteau of the words slacker and activism. The word is usually considered a pejorative term that describes “feel-good” measures, in support of an issue or social cause, that have little or no practical effect other than to make the person doing it take satisfaction from the feeling they have contributed. The acts tend to require minimal personal effort from the slacktivist. The underlying assumption being promoted by the term is that these low cost efforts substitute for more substantive actions rather than supplementing them, although this assumption has not been borne out by research.

Slacktivist activities include signing Internet petitions, joining a community organization without contributing to the organization’s efforts, copying and pasting of social network statuses or messages or altering one’s personal data or avatar on social network services. Research is beginning to explore the connection between the concept and modern activism/advocacy, as groups are increasingly using social media to facilitate civic engagement and collective action.

German: Die Zusammensetzung aus ‚slacker‘ (engl. für rumhängen, nichts tun, lustlos sein) und ‚acti­vism‘ bezeichnet Menschen, die eigentlich zu faul sind, den Arsch hoch zu kriegen, aber andererseits doch aktiv sind. Allerdings nur bei solchen Aktionen, die wenig Anstrengung erfordern. Beispiel: einer Facebok-Gruppe beitreten, Armbändchen oder Buttons mit (politischen) Botschaften tragen oder an ‚niedrigschwelligen‘ Demonstrationen teilnehmen, die nicht viel Aktionismus verlangen (Buy Nothing Day oder World Earth Hour).

(English Wikipedia, Deutsche Quelle, Picture CC Alexander)