Mobile Unrest: Assessing the Impact of Mobile ICTs on The Egyptian Social Movement of 2011
Date
2012-06-18
Authors
Turner, Caitlin
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Abstract
In an ever-evolving technological landscape, conflict analysis and resolution (CAR) practitioners are faced with the unique task of working in a rapidly changing landscape that is susceptible to the reliance on and impact of global information communication technologies (ICTs). Within the last few years, mobile ICTs such as Facebook, Twitter and SMS have played a prominent role in social movement activities; providing CAR practitioners with an opportunity to study and to research how collective action is shaped by the purposeful use of mobile ICTs. This Masters thesis seeks to better understand the relationship and interplay between mobile ICT use and social movements by asking: how does the use of mobile ICTs impact the behaviour of social movement participants? With a focus on social movement activity in Egypt, this research seeks to understand if and how the use of mobile ICTs has impacted the scale, pace and pattern of the behaviour of participants engaged in social resistance. Informed through an extensive literature review and an interview based quantitative analysis, this research seeks to create a base of understanding that can be built upon through additional research and analysis. Mobile communication and ICT use is a pervasive means of communication throughout the world; its impact on conflict is still a touch elusive which makes this a moment ripe for analysis. The use of mobile ICTs is not a fading phenomenon, and as such, the CAR field is best served to begin understanding the power and implications of these evolving technologies and communication tools as they impact conflict and its resolution.
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Keywords
Information Communication Technology, Social Media, Social Movement(s), Egyptian Revolution, Conflict Resolution, Communications