ABSTRACT
Social conflict entails the perception of divergent interests, which means that the parties believe that they have incompatible preferences among a set of available options. Much of the behavioral research on negotiation has been guided by a general paradigm that posits that the conditions that prevail at the time of negotiation have an impact on psychological states, such as motives, perceptions, and cognitions. Electronic communication exists within social systems and the conflicts therein. The technology can affect qualitative changes in the nature of existing social conflict, and can create new conflict. Electronic transformations of disputes pertain to the changes over time in the nature and scope of the conflict. Sometimes the transformations initiate conflict or exacerbate escalation of an existing conflict, and promote the use of struggle and contending tactics. Electronic communication can also amplify the speed and urgency of conflict and foster greater interdependence among contemporaneous conflicts.
