Dark Side of Communication

Much of science, and indeed, art and humanistic philosophy, has been borne out of misery. Medicine sought to heal the sick, philosophy sought to seek meaning in the incomprehensible loneliness of meaninglessness, poetry and art often sought solace and reflection in the tragedy of love lost and epic conflicts, and the sciences often sought solutions to the many hazards of everyday survival. Such pursuits, however, often became yoked to the pursuit of happiness, and the ideals of perfection, symmetry, order, and a more fulfilling life. By the middle of the 20th century, much of psychology, which had been strongly influenced by medical models of illness and disorder, began a reformation in the direction of a more positive psychology, in which humanistic ideals of self-actualization, assertiveness, and aspirational achievement became a mantra of many in various fields of social science. By the 1990s, the pendulum was due to reorient once again to a more inclusive approach that could incorporate both the darker and brighter realms of the human condition. This movement took on many monikers, which will be included in the purview of the dark side of communication where relevant.

The phrase the dark side was popularized in the Star Wars saga, but the phrase preceded this particular set of memes. For some time, the dark side of the moon served as an icon of things permanently hidden from view, unknown, and mysterious. The metaphor of darkness goes back to ancient times in its association with dangers, and the “dark arts” of the devil, and the evils the world can inflict. Deprived of light, humans are a frail species, vulnerable in a world that is often predatory (“red in tooth and claw”). As such, we tend to be afraid of the dark, and the dangers it represents. That it can be viewed geospatially as having a “side” implies that there is an opposite, or complementary, side—the bright side. It is in this interplay of light and dark that the metaphor has evolved, sometimes viewed as a movement, as a theory, as a paradigm, and as a heuristic caution.

There is a varied landscape in contemporary social scientific approaches to the dark side. The main ways in which the dark side has influenced communication research can be identified as nominal, axiological, sociological, theoretical, and methodological. Each of these is briefly summarized in the following sections followed by a brief discussion on the implications of the dark side of communication.