Uncivil communication and norm violations in online discourses around socio-scientific issues
Incivility is a growing concern as it has become a common feature of public online discourses, especially around politicians and political topics e.g. in the comment sections of news websites (e.g. Coe et al. 2015, Papacharissi 2004). Studies have shown increasing polarization effects towards a topic when perceiving topics in the context of observing uncivil discussions (Anderson et al. 2014). Also, discussants who use uncivil language are perceived as less credible (Ng & Detenber, 2005). This may negatively affect deliberative discourses. In her dissertation, Nicola Peters examines online discussions around socio-scientific issues such as the Covid-19 pandemic and climate change with regard to uncivil forms of communication. In doing so, she also addresses the question of how socio-scientific issues are discussed and negotiated.
