Provides real-world insights into social and political conflict across disciplines
The Handbook of Social and Political Conflict offers a comprehensive exploration of conflict from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, merging insights from fields including sociology, political science, psychology, communication, and conflict resolution. Bringing together original work by experts from around the world, this authoritative volume provides readers with a deep understanding of the mechanisms, causes, and consequences of conflict.
Designed for those who wish to bridge academic disciplines, the Handbook both advances theoretical understanding and offers practical conflict resolution strategies that can be applied in a broad range of contexts, from interpersonal disputes to international tensions. Each in-depth chapter tackles a unique concept while maintaining a coherent narrative that spans topics such as political polarization, the rhetoric of social control, the role of technology in shaping conflict behaviors, and much more.
Presenting new theoretical perspectives and tools to address today's most pressing issues, the Handbook of Social and Political Conflict:
Examines contemporary issues such as political polarization, social ostracism, cancel culture, and information warfare Contains in-depth analysis of critical contemporary issues such as the role of technology, artificial intelligence, and media in modern conflict Addresses both adversarial and cooperative approaches to conflict resolution Incorporates cutting-edge research and theoretical frameworks on contemporary social and political conflicts Offers practical approaches to fostering resilience, peacebuilding, and critical media literacy
Whether examining the escalation of political tensions or exploring the potential for peacebuilding, the Handbook of Social and Political Conflict is ideal for graduate and advanced undergraduate students in conflict resolution, political science, sociology, and communication studies. It is also an invaluable reference for professionals working in conflict management, diplomacy, international relations, and social advocacy.
Tables and Figures ix Notes on Contributors xi 1. Introduction 1 Solon Simmons and Sergei A. Samoilenko Section I Polarization, Moral Outrage, and Extremism 17 2. Polarization 19 Samantha Vilkins, Axel Bruns, Sebastian Svegaard, Tariq Choucair, and Katharina Esau 3. Intergroup Emotions in Intergroup Conflicts: Power Disparities Perspective 31 Nur Kassem, Nimrod Nir, Anat Perry, and Eran Halperin 4. How Political and Social Conflict Enter into the Corporate Realm: Scansis as an Exemplar of Moral Outrage-Inducing Crises 47 W. Timothy Coombs and Elina R. Tachkova 5. Illiberalism as a Conceptual Prism for Studying Political and Social Conflict 57 Marlene Laruelle 6. Connective Action and Digital Surrogate Organizations 65 Steven Livingston and Lorcan Neill 7. Trojan Horse Discourse 75 Michiel Luining and Tom Van Hout 8. Culture Wars in Central Europe 83 Zora Hesová 9. Extremist Aggression: A Social Psychological Explanation 93 Daniel Rothbart Section II Systems of Power and Rhetorics of Control 105 10. Rhetoric of Social Conflict 107 Gordana Lazić 11. Securitization 119 Marta Lukacovic 12. Cancel Culture Rhetoric 131 Jennifer Keohane 13. Spiral of Silence and Social Conflict 141 Sherice Gearhart and Oluseyi Adegbola 14. Social Ostracism and Conflict 151 Natasha R. Wood, Andrew H. Hales, and Kipling D. Williams 15. Bureaucracy 165 Amanda J. Reinke and Jaymelee J. Kim 16. Complexity and Distributed Governance 173 Jonathan P. Marshall Section III Narrative, World-Building, and Imagination 185 17. Applying Structurational Divergence Theory to Sociopolitical Conflict 187 Anne M. Nicotera 18. Sociomaterial Actors in Political Moral Conflict 201 Kristen L. Cole and Spencer D. Choate 19. Political Conflict Frames 211 Emma S. van der Goot, Michael Hameleers, and Jeroen de Ridder 20. Gossip 221 Francesca Giardini 21. The Epistemic Eclipse: Narrative, Ideology, and the Political Situation 231 Oakley T. Hill 22. Songworld 241 Audrey Ann Williams Section IV Media, Misinformation, and Popular Culture 251 23. The Tricksters of Permanent Liminality 253 Sergei A. Samoilenko 24. Persuasive Attack and Defense in Social and Political Conflict 271 William L. Benoit 25. Character Assassination in Politics: Gendered and Racialized Attacks on Kamala Harris 281 Jennifer Keohane, Martijn Icks, Eric Shiraev, and Sergei Samoilenko 26. Ridicule in Late-Night Political Humor in the United States: Contours and Consequences 291 Stephen J. Farnsworth, S. Robert Lichter, and Farah Latif 27. Artificial Intelligence 301 Henrik S. Sætra, Stuart Mills, and Evan Selinger 28. Visual Misinformation 313 Teresa E. Weikmann 29. Information Warfare as a Theoretical Construct and an Operational Practice 323 Greg Simons and Iulian Chifu Section V Resilience, Humanity, and Hope 335 30. Escalation and De-escalation 337 Vincent August 31. Immunity 349 Adalberto Fernandes 32. Positive Peace 359 Michael D. English and Richard E. Rubenstein 33. Communication Approaches to Community Peacebuilding 369 Doris E. Wesley and Jessica K. Jameson 34. Human Rights 381 Clifford Bob 35. Women’s Rights Advocacy in Africa 393 Innocent Chiluwa 36. Inoculation Theory and Conspiracy, Radicalization, and Violent Extremism 405 Josh Compton and Kurt Braddock 37. Constructive Conflict and Critical Media Literacy 415 Nolan Higdon 38. The End of War: On the Future of State Violence 427 Solon Simmons and Keenan Yoho 39. Conclusions, Key Takeaways, and Implications 435 Sergei A. Samoilenko and Solon Simmons Index 445
Sergei A. Samoilenko is Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication at George Mason University. His research focuses on issues in crisis communication, reputation management, and political communication. He is a co-founder of the Research Lab for Character Assassination and Reputation Politics (CARP), an interdisciplinary research community, studying strategies and tactics of subversive communication and ways to counter them. He is an author and editor of several books, including the Handbook of Research on Deception, Fake News, and Misinformation Online. Solon Simmons is Full Professor and Director of The Narrative Transformation Lab (TNT Lab) at George Mason University’s Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution, where he is leading efforts to develop cutting-edge narrative tools for use in practical applications in both adversarial struggles for justice and collaborative journeys toward peace. Solon served as interim Dean for the Carter School in 2013, Vice President for Global Strategy for George Mason from 2014-2017, and is currently President of the Faculty Senate.
