The Quantum Entanglement of Dialogue and Persuasion in Social Media: Introducing the Per-Di Principle

• Published in: Atlantic journal of communication Vol. 23; no. 1; pp. 5 - 18
• Main Author: Theunissen, Petra
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Routledge 01.01.2015
• ISSN: 1545-6870; 1545-6889
• DOI: 10.1080/15456870.2015.972405

Social media is said to offer organizations numerous opportunities to engage dialogically with their audiences. This view has resulted in scholars emphasizing the value of dialogue over persuasion even though both have a role to play in the development and maintenance of relationships. Rooted in quantum thinking, this article suggests that dialogue and persuasions exist simultaneously within the complex social media environment. It introduces the Per-Di Principle, which proposes that persuasion (Per) and dialogue (Di) are entangled and that we err in approaching the two styles of communication as binary oppositions. The article concludes by suggesting that effective professional communicators not only are fluent in dialogue and persuasion but can gauge the state of the organization-public relationship by the style of communication being used.