11988: Affective Contagion Effecting Institutional Change

Monday, July 28, 2025

15:30 - 17:00 CEST (GMT+2)

Location: Bella Center: Hall A- A1-m4

Session Type: Caucus
Orientation: Research
Shareable link: https://cdmcd.co/YKLQWZ

Organizer(s)

SP

Shama Patel

New York University, United States
FD

Frank G.A De Bakker

IESEG School of Management, France

Participant(s)

AB

Abayomi Baiyere

Smith School of Business, Queen's U., Finland
NL

Natalia Levina

New York U., United States
DK

Dan Kärreman

Copenhagen Business School, Denmark
EC

Elanor Colleoni

-, Italy
NE

Nada Endrissat

Bern U. of Applied Sciences, Switzerland
ME

Michael Andreas Etter

King's College London, United Kingdom
ZJ

Zoe Jonassen

U. of St. Gallen, Switzerland
DS

Dennis Schoeneborn

Copenhagen Business School, Denmark
MT

Madeline Toubiana

Telfer School of Management, U. of Ottawa, Canada
MV

Maxim Voronov

Schulich School of Business, Canada
BW

Batia Mishan Wiesenfeld

New York University, United States
CG

Christian Garmann Johnsen

Copenhagen Business School, Denmark

This caucus explores how affective contagions catalyzed by digital media shape organizations and institutions, emphasizing the role of communication and artificial intelligence in their effectiveness. Guided discussions call for deeper theorization to address their societal impact and potential for institutional change, towards the development of a shared research agenda

Affective digital media (videos, images, hashtags, etc.) can trigger intense emotional reactions that spread rapidly, connecting ideas and values across cultural and geographic boundaries, fostering "affective contagions" that evolve and scale in digital and physical spaces driving institutional change. This caucus will address two questions: how can institutional theory evolve to incorporate affective contagion as a driver of institutional emergence and change and what are the institutional implications of public exposure to AI generated emotional content with the potential to scale contagions?