What Do We Know about Algorithmic Literacy? The Status Quo and a Research Agenda for a Growing Field

Abstract

The increasing emergence of algorithms in our daily use of technologies comes with a growing field of empirical research trying to understand how aware and knowledgeable individuals are about algorithms. This field is marked by a certain diversity in terms of how it theorizes and measures people’s literacy when interacting with algorithms. We propose converging on the term algorithmic literacy that covers different dimensions used by previous research. This article summarizes the state of knowledge on algorithmic literacy by systematically presenting initial steps in theory building and measurement development. Drawing on this, we propose an agenda including five different directions that future research could focus on: 1) theory building to understand algorithmic literacy, 2) addressing the algorithmic divide, 3) uncovering the relationship between algorithmic literacy and attitudes, 4) examining algorithmic literacy as predictor for user behavior, and 5) exploring ways to increase algorithmic literacy.

Danning i digitale praksiser

“…De er snarere infrastruktur, der i praksis fungerer som grundlaget for afgørende funktioner i samfundet, politik, transport, undervisning, sundhedsvaesen mv. (Oeldorf-Hirsch & Neubaum, 2021). Taenk på, hvor mange gange i løbet af en dag vi interagerer med digitale teknologier.…”

Fluid agency in relation to algorithms: Tensions, mediations, and transversalities

“…The focus of these studies has been on the awareness or knowledge of users, that is, the different ways and degrees in which people understand what algorithms are, how they function, and what consequences their operation has (Cotter and Reisdorf, 2020; Dogruel, 2021; Oeldorf-Hirsch and Neubaum, 2021). To operationalize these concepts, researchers have posited such notions as folk theories (intuitive, informal theories that individuals develop to explain algorithms and their consequences) or imaginaries (ways of thinking about algorithms and how they operate) (Bucher, 2018; Ytre-Arne and Moe, 2021).…”

What's in the black box? How algorithmic knowledge promotes corrective and restrictive actions to counter misinformation in the USA, the UK, South Korea and Mexico

“…Theoretical contributions This study provides a novel theoretical explanation for the role of algorithmic knowledge in the post-truth era. While a need for more insights on algorithms has been increasingly highlighted due to the significant impact of social media algorithms, theoretical and empirical examinations of how enhanced understanding of algorithms shapes people's perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors have been scarce (Oeldorf-Hirsch and Neubaum, 2023). By elucidating how algorithmic knowledge promotes misinformation-corrective and restrictive actions through presumed influence of misinformation on self and others, this study expands algorithms research that has largely focused on gauging the level of mere awareness of algorithms (e.g.…”

“…Albeit the importance of algorithmic knowledge is widely recognized, empirical studies on the consequences of algorithmic knowledge are scarce (Oeldorf-Hirsch and Neubaum, 2023). Particularly, it remains unknown whether algorithmic knowledge serves as a countermeasure against misinformation on social media.…”