Trauma Studies in the Digital Age

This chapter introduces Digital Trauma Studies, a new research field which investigates the representation, transmission and processing of trauma – individual, as well as collective, historical and intergenerational trauma – in the digital environment, on social media and via digital tools. It looks at how specific social media platforms define trauma related communication. On the one hand, digital media can transmit trauma via the spread of violent and catastrophic images; but on the other hand digital media platforms also offer novel ways of dealing with trauma, via creating a space in which acts and gestures, such as sharing and commenting, can become a means of coping, trauma processing, building resilience and reconciliation.