Contemporary Trends in Conflict and Communication Technology and Social Media

Conflict communication has been dramatically disrupted in an era of increased polarization that impacts the willingness and ability of people with different views and values to engage in productive dialogue that crosses bridges and promotes understanding. The use of social media is often implicated in the promulgation of alternative facts, false news, and intimidation, yet technology and new media also have the capacity to enhance and transform conflict communication in family, workplace, and social settings. This volume will cover myriad ways conflict communication occurs in mediated spaces, whether through social media platforms such as twitter, facebook, and instagram, social enterprise spaces such as yammer and proprietary networks, or through formal conflict management and dispute system technologies. Throughout the world conflicts are increasingly mediated in hybrid spaces--intersections among mediated and physical space. In the 21st century nearly all communication events are hybrid. Therefore, learning how to enhance mediated communication during conflict is an important empirical and practical issue. This volume will include contributions from scholars and practitioners of conflict management across the globe who have turned their attention to how conflict communication occurs in mediated and hybrid spaces. It will include three sections: (1) conflict communication on social media; (2) technology and social media as a tool to promote dialogue and collaboration; and (3) design and use of online platforms for conflict resolution.

Conflict communication has been dramatically disrupted in an era of increased polarization that impacts the willingness and ability of people with different views and values to engage in productive dialogue that crosses bridges and promotes understanding. The use of social media is often implicated in the promulgation of alternative facts, false news, and intimidation, yet technology and new media also have the capacity to enhance and transform conflict communication in family, workplace, and social settings. This volume will cover myriad ways conflict communication occurs in mediated spaces, whether through social media platforms such as twitter, facebook, and instagram, social enterprise spaces such as yammer and proprietary networks, or through formal conflict management and dispute system technologies. Throughout the world conflicts are increasingly mediated in hybrid spaces--intersections among mediated and physical space. In the 21st century nearly all communication events are hybrid. Therefore, learning how to enhance mediated communication during conflict is an important empirical and practical issue. This volume will include contributions from scholars and practitioners of conflict management across the globe who have turned their attention to how conflict communication occurs in mediated and hybrid spaces. It will include three sections: (1) conflict communication on social media; (2) technology and social media as a tool to promote dialogue and collaboration; and (3) design and use of online platforms for conflict resolution.

The editor will draw from over 20 years of research and practice in organizational conflict, mediation and third-party intervention, and interdisciplinary collaboration to write an introduction that frames the book and a conclusion that captures the key scholarly contributions and practical lessons to take away from the chapters in this volume.