Strategies for Communicative Resilience in Native Platforms during International Internet Disconnection: A Case Study of the Ramadan Conflict

Nesari, Morteza

doi:10.22083/cssms.2026.582836.1141

Strategies for Communicative Resilience in Native Platforms during International Internet Disconnection: A Case Study of the Ramadan Conflict

Document Type : Original Article

Author

Morteza Nesari

Ph.D. Candidate, Cultural Strategic Management, Faculty of Strategic Management, National Defense University, Tehran, Iran. (Corresponding Author) Email: Nesari.Morteza@sndu.ac.ir

https://doi.org/10.22083/cssms.2026.582836.1141

Abstract

Introduction: This study aims to identify, explain, and model the communicative resilience strategies adopted by native Iranian digital platforms during the Ramadan Conflict, defined as an 88-day period of international internet disruption. It examines how digital platforms, industry actors, and users responded to infrastructural instability, economic pressures, and restrictive governance during this period of crisis.
Methods: The study employed a qualitative Grounded Theory approach based on Strauss and Corbin’s methodology. Eighteen experts in platform management, digital governance, cybersecurity, and communication sociology were selected through purposive and theoretical sampling. Semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted until theoretical saturation was achieved after the fifteenth interview, followed by three additional interviews to strengthen the credibility of the findings. Data were analyzed through the sequential stages of open, axial, and selective coding.
Findings: The resulting paradigm model identified communicative resilience as a multilayered phenomenon shaped by interacting structural, organizational, and social factors. Causal conditions included infrastructural instability, such as routing disruptions and bandwidth saturation, together with economic losses and cybersecurity threats. Contextual conditions comprised changing cultural practices, restrictive governance prioritizing security over efficiency, and evolving user behaviors, including migration to domestic platforms and attempts to circumvent restrictions. Intervening conditions included currency fluctuations, inconsistencies in service provision, and shortages of skilled human resources.
Four interrelated strategic dimensions of communicative resilience emerged: (1) optimization of technical architecture; (2) management of user trust during periods of uncertainty; (3) collective advocacy and coordination within the platform industry; and (4) active user adaptation through local intranets, offline tools, and peer-to-peer knowledge sharing. These strategies generated broader consequences, including the strengthening of domestic digital platforms, changes in governance arrangements characterized by expanded regulatory oversight, and social transformations reflected in the weakening of online solidarity and collective interaction.
Conclusion: The findings suggest that communicative resilience should be understood not as a simple return to pre-crisis conditions but as an evolutionary process shaped by the interaction between technological infrastructures and societal needs. The study indicates that sustainable resilience requires a transition from “engineering resilience” toward “evolutionary resilience,” emphasizing adaptive governance, public trust, and user agency rather than centralized control alone. In this respect, the Ramadan Conflict represents a critical turning point in the evolution of Iran’s digital platform ecosystem. Without such a transition, future crises may increase the risk of fragmentation and isolation within the national digital environment.

Keywords

Communicative Resilience

Ramadan Conflict

Grounded Theory

Platform Strategies

Networked Governance

Subjects

Governance and Policy-Making in Cyberspace and Social Media

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