Emotions in Digital Interactions

Combining the conceptual tools of interactionist and social constructionist positions, this book presents an in-depth investigation of emotions in digital interactions. Through the central case study of online bereavement communities for women who have suffered perinatal loss, this volume highlights the significance of affective sanctioning as constitutive of group dynamics and practice. The authors chart the emergence of a new ethnopsychology of motherhood—the category of ‘Angels’ Mothers’—arising from the localized practices of a community whose experience of grief is otherwise disenfranchised. Through their detailed theoretical exploration of the centrality of micro-situational dynamics, alongside the rich empirical illustration of collectively shared feeling rules and norms, Rafanell and Sawicka develop a naturalistic approach to the analysis of empirical data, providing insights for policy-making interventions.  

Irene Rafanell is Lecturer in Sociology at the University of the West of Scotland, UK, where she teaches on gender theory, sociology of the body, social theory and theories of power. She is an Honorary Fellow and a member of the Center for Research on Families and Relationships of the School of Social and Political Studies at Edinburgh University, UK. Her work explores the connections between social theory, social constructionism, sociology of knowledge and the body. Her book Sexed and Gendered Bodies as Social Institutions will be published by Palgrave. She is currently developing research on digital sociology and sociology of emotions analyzing digital communicative interactions.

Maja Sawicka is Assistant Professor at the Institute of Sociology of Warsaw University, Poland. In her work, she focuses on emotions perceived as social phenomena, investigating the links between culture, interactional group processes, and individual emotional experiences. She has a wide teaching experience in the field of Social Psychology and Qualitative Research Methods. She is the author of Emotions in Interactions in the Contemporary Polish Society (2018, in Polish).

“This thought-provoking volume draws upon a sophisticated, distinctive theoretical approach to analyse the experience of bereavement following perinatal loss. A significant contribution to social theory and also to our understanding of the role played by emotions in social life.” (Donald MacKenzie, Professor of Sociology, The University of Edinburgh, Scotland, UK)

“The reader is provided with innovative theoretical tools to understand how humans make the realities of social worlds. The authors demonstrate how online communities of ‘angels’ mothers’ create a world that enables wider recognition of their individually experienced grief.” (Lynn Jamieson, Professor of Sociology, The University of Edinburgh, Scotland, UK)

“An excellent addition to the literature looking to understand the digital realm from a phenomenological standpoint. Rafanell and Sawicka offer a compelling depiction of virtual bereavement communities,  resulting in a convincing piece of work, highly recommended to scholars and students interested in digital sociology, the sociology of emotions and institutionalism.”  (Greti-Iulia Ivana, Lecturer in Digital Society, University of Glasgow, UK)