Ecologies of Violence on Social Media: An Exploration of Practices, Contexts, and Grammars of Online Harm

Abstract

Violence is an almost ubiquitous phenomenon in contemporary digital environments. In this context, there is a growing need to understand how violence is enacted and represented on social media. Drawing from a case study where Colombian young adults discussed the violence they interacted with on their everyday uses of digital platforms, this article explores how violence on social media is experienced and understood by users. Findings emphasize the need to look at violence on digital platforms as a multifaceted, fluid, overlapping, and interconnected phenomenon. In light of these results, I suggest framing current harmful practices as ecologies of violence. To better explore these ecologies, I outline three specific areas that highlight how violence is transformed on social media: practices, contexts, and grammars. Overall, this study emphasizes the need to recognize and address the complexity of violence in social media—a necessary step toward building cultures of peace in and outside of our digital environments.