What if we could use abductive reasoning to uncover the hidden dynamics of conflict-spotting surprising patterns in how people express themselves through facial expressions, prosodic features, and words? Abduction, by iterating between data and theory, helps us make sense of these subtle cues, explaining why some interactions escalate while others remain constructive-insights traditional methods often miss.
This symposium shows how abductive research designs can transform conflict research. Moving beyond deductive approaches that test existing theories and inductive approaches that build theory from qualitative insights, abduction offers a third path: generating plausible explanations for unexpected patterns. Advances in computational methods now make it possible to analyze fine-grained linguistic, prosodic, and facial cues, revealing behaviors that determine whether disagreements deteriorate or are managed constructively. Bringing together leading experts in conflict management, team dynamics, and computational modeling, this session explores how abductive reasoning can open new research directions, when it provides a clear advantage over traditional approaches, and how to effectively communicate abductive findings to diverse academic audiences.
Join us at our symposium on "Abductive Study of Conflict Expressions Using Large-Scale Multi-Modal Data Analyses"
📅 July 28 | 10:15 – 11:45 AM
📍 Bella Center, Hall B – B0-m1
Hear from an exceptional panel:
Randall S. Peterson (London Business School), Kevin Rockmann (George Mason University), Gerardo Okhuysen(UC Irvine), Julia Ive(University College London)
Moderated by Mark Kennedy
Why attend?
✔️ Learn how abductive reasoning can open entirely new ways of studying conflict and collaboration
✔️ See how computational methods reveal patterns traditional research misses
✔️ Discover when abduction offers a clear advantage over inductive or deductive approaches
✔️ Get practical tips on framing abductive work for reviewers and skeptical audiences
✔️ Engage directly with leading scholars shaping the future of conflict and organizational research
If you're serious about understanding conflict, teams, or negotiation, this session will change how you think about research.
👉 Mark your calendar and join us – we look forward to your questions and insights!
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Burint Bevis
Doctoral Student
Burint Bevis Person
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