Abstract
The purpose of this article is to offer scholars and practitioners a more coherent and holistic starting point for asking questions about information and communication technologies for peacebuilding than has been available so far. A transdisciplinary proposal is made that applies critical pedagogy of peace education to the way that digital media can be used to build peace in communities and societies. This argument is further underpinned by insights from cognitive science and social psychology. The concept of sociotechnical consciousness is developed, which describes what it is like to be experiencing a sociotechnical system. We conclude that, to deploy digital media as part of peacebuilding initiatives, the media’s impact on individuals and groups deserve as much consideration as the content that is delivered via these media. This has important implications for how to design and use media in peacebuilding contexts.
Highlights
There are many different understandings of the aims of peacebuilding and peace education, but the creation and transformation of relationships are usually part of it (Lederach, 2010; UNESCOIICBA, 2017)
Sociotechnical consciousness is an emergent process of a sociotechnical system that gives expression to what it is like to be experiencing that system
The co-design process that led to the development of our digital behaviour change interventions engaged non-governmental organisations (NGOs), community-based organisations (CBOs), and service recipients in activities that elicited their views on “how can we use the technologies available to us to support peacebuilding in your community?” This acknowledged the importance of people’s contexts and situations, and it enabled the practising of co-creation and critical thinking
Summary
There are many different understandings of the aims of peacebuilding and peace education, but the creation and transformation of relationships are usually part of it (Lederach, 2010; UNESCOIICBA, 2017). Zembylas and Bekerman (2013) have argued that peace education suffers from weak theoretical foundations. They argue that within the field there is a lack of reflection regarding the assumptions and premises that lend legitimacy to peace education ideas and practices. These conceptual deficiencies as regards both peace education (discussed in detail below) and ICT4Peace (identified by the WOSCAP study and outlined above) mean that the Isooko project, and other endeavours in the field, lack the sound theoretical foundations that are necessary for forming appropriate research questions and for developing effective practice. At the very least, addressing these deficiencies would make a contribution to diversifying conceptual and theoretical approaches in peace education and ICT4Peace
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