Mediated Interaction

Abstract

Mediated interaction, that is, interaction between people enabled by information and communication technologies, has become increasingly common for most people around the globe. This entry discusses separately the types of mediated interactions, with their own limitations and potentials, and tries to point out the relevance and consequentiality of media and technologies for the organization of social action. Recently mobile technologies have challenged the distance between mediated interaction and face‐to‐face interactions. In future, face‐to‐face and digital interactions will increasingly be merged together. These new types of mediated interactions will open numerous challenges for social sciences, not least in the analysis of risks involved.