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Affective Polarisation and Emotional Distortions on Social Media

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 October 2022

Alessandra Tanesini
Alessandra Tanesini*
Affiliation:
Cardiff University
*
tanesini@cardiff.ac.uk
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Abstract

In this paper I argue that social networking sites (SNSs) are emotion technologies that promote a highly charged emotional environment where intrinsic emotion regulation is significantly weakened, and people's emotions are more strongly modulated by other people and by the technology itself. I show that these features of social media promote a simplistic emotional outlook which is an obstacle to the development and maintenance of virtue. In addition, I focus on the mechanisms that promote group-based anger and thus give rise to affective polarisation. In the final section, after a discussion of the positive value of some forms of anger, I argue that SNSs should not be designed to prohibit or suppress anger, but that its encouragement should also be avoided. I conclude with a suggestion about how this might be achieved.

Type
Paper
Information
Royal Institute of Philosophy Supplements , Volume 92: Values and Virtues for a Challenging World , October 2022 , pp. 87 - 109
Copyright
Copyright © The Royal Institute of Philosophy and the contributors 2022

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