Actor-Networks in Political Moral Conflict: A Case Study of an Online Gun Control Debate

Abstract

This research case study employs a theoretical and methodological framework of moral conflict theory informed by actor-network theory to better understand the sociomaterial entanglements—networks of human and non-human actors—that constitute political moral conflict. We analyze a case of moral conflict surrounding the issue of gun control, found within an online debate forum that was initiated by the question: should guns be banned in America? Through this case analysis, we identify key convergences and divergences in communication that facilitate coordination and cause incommensurability in conflict. These results reveal a new possibility for transcending political polarization through dialogue that attempts to account for the moral demands of objects.