Overview
MIT CCC organized internship programs for high school students to collaborate with MIT researchers to test and inform the design of an online dialogue app that aimed to explore methods for structuring authentic and healthy conversations.
Our new social dialogue network was built as an effort to counteract the effects of social media, which had greatly disrupted how we communicated and engaged with each other in meaningful ways. It was designed to allow users to converse, share, and develop a shared understanding in a supportive and safe environment.
By exploring methods that helped structure healthy conversations, we aimed to learn how social dialogue networks could create a space that (1) encouraged and supported authentic, constructive, and healthy dialogue, (2) provided a brave space where people could connect, explore, and learn together, (3) met the emotional and social needs of people that weren’t being met elsewhere, (4) supported positive identity development, and (5) fostered a sense of community and belonging.
The app was designed and developed by MIT CCC’s cooperation partner, Cortico, a non-profit social technology company with the mission of bringing underheard voices to the center of a healthier public dialogue.
