Machine Habitus: Toward a Sociology of Algorithms
A recording of the talk can be found below:
Event is hybrid. Participants may attend in person (T2, Computer Science Building, Aalto University) or online on .
Speaker:
Massimo Airoldi
Assistant Professor of Sociology, Department of Social and Political Sciences University of Milan
Talk Abstract:
Machine Habitus: Toward a Sociology of Algorithms (Polity, 2021) articulates a theory of machine learning systems as socialized agents contributing to the (techno-)social reproduction of cultural patterns and inequalities. Building on a multidisciplinary literature in critical algorithm studies, media research and computer science, Airoldi discusses how research on algorithmic bias would benefit from a sociological perspective aimed to unpack the recursive mechanisms linking the 鈥渃ulture in the code鈥 鈥 i.e., the social shaping of machine learning 鈥 and the 鈥渃ode in the culture鈥 鈥 i.e., the algorithmic shaping of society. The notion of 鈥渕achine habitus鈥, inspired by the influential work of sociologist Pierre Bourdieu, illuminates how socially rooted cultural propensities embedded in data orient the allegedly neutral classificatory behavior of AI systems, with important yet understudied consequences on consumption, public opinion, culture and social life more generally.
Speaker Bio:
Massimo Airoldi is Assistant Professor of Sociology at the Department of Social and Political Sciences of the University of Milan. Previously he worked as researcher and Assistant Professor at the Lifestyle Research Center of EM Lyon Business School. His research interests include the social implications of AI, the platformization of consumption and public opinion, computational methods, and consumer culture.