The Institutionalization of Emotional Vocabularies on Social Media in the Work of Civil Society Organizations

• In Event: The Role of Social Media in Civil Society

Abstract

Recent research in organizational institutionalism has indicated the relevance and prevalence of emotions in institutions and in institutionalization processes (Voronov & Weber, 2016). Not the least, this research has pointed to the importance of language as a central signifier of emotions. Perhaps more than anywhere else, written emotional vocabularies and the use of emoticons are prevalent in social media and digital communication at large (Bennett & Segerberg, 2012; Derks, Bos, & Von Grumbkow, 2008). Studies have shown how digital enthusiasm is a central component of short term civil society engagement on social media (Gerbaudo, 2016). Yet we still know very little about how this type of communication affects more substantial institutionalized structures of organizations and organizing. The aim of this paper is to explore the institutionalization of words signaling positive emotions as a means to organize civil society. The paper draws on emotional vocabularies from 8074 posts from 59 Swedish Facebook groups and pages, all collected during three months in 2015, as well as in-depth conversations on emotional vocabularies with four focus groups comprised of 30 managers and staff of established civil society organizations. Our analysis points to an inflation in the usage of emotional vocabulary in civil society organizations, indicating an emerging institutionalization process of positive emotions as an overarching means to organize civil society. This institutionalization process entails: 1) the replacement of previous forms of engagement based on shared negative experiences or contentious politics by strong positive emotional content 2) the increasing importance of emotional language competence in terms of the usage of positive emotional vocabulary to manage both staff, board members, and volunteers 3) the increased possibility to express and be open about emotional states in the workplace.

References:
Bennett, W. L., & Segerberg, A. 2012. The logic of connective action: Digital media and the personalization of contentious politics. Information, Communication & Society, 15(5): 739-768.
Derks, D., Bos, A. E., & Von Grumbkow, J. 2008. Emoticons in computer-mediated communication: Social motives and social context. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 11(1): 99-101.
Gerbaudo, P. 2016. Constructing Public Space| Rousing the Facebook Crowd: Digital Enthusiasm and Emotional Contagion in the 2011 Protests in Egypt and Spain. International Journal of Communication, 10: 20.
Voronov, M., & Weber, K. 2016. The heart of institutions: Emotional competence and institutional actorhood. Academy of Management Review, 41(3): 456-478.

Authors

• Noomi Weinryb, Södertörn University

• Gustafsson Nils, Lund University