Algorithmic media use and algorithm literacy: An integrative literature review

Summary

This paper offers a systematic integrative review of 169 studies across the social sciences and humanities to map how algorithm literacy has been conceptualized and empirically studied. The authors respond to a rapidly expanding but fragmented field, arguing that existing scholarship lacks a unified framework for understanding what algorithm literacy is and what shapes it. By synthesizing definitions and identifying endogenous (individual-level), exogenous (contextual and platform-level), and other associated factors, the review proposes a more cohesive foundation for studying algorithmic media use and its societal implications.

Key Contributions

• First systematic integrative review of algorithm literacy bridging social sciences and humanities.
• A synthesized framework distinguishing endogenous, exogenous, and other factors that shape users’ understanding of algorithms.
• Identification of conceptual fragmentation and gaps, with directions for future cumulative research.
• Positions algorithm literacy as a core construct for media and communication research on datafication and platform power.

Methods

• Systematic integrative literature review methodology.
• Corpus of 169 publications spanning the social sciences and humanities.
• Thematic synthesis covering (a) conceptualizations of algorithm literacy and (b) factors associated with algorithmic understanding (endogenous, exogenous, and other).

Findings

• Algorithm literacy is defined inconsistently across the field, with terminology and operationalizations varying widely between disciplines and studies.
• Users’ algorithmic understanding is shaped jointly by individual-level attributes (endogenous) and contextual or platform-level conditions (exogenous), along with additional mediating factors.
• The fragmentation of the literature impedes cumulative theory-building and comparability across empirical work.
• A clearer integrative conceptualization is needed to support both research and interventions aimed at fostering algorithm literacy.

Connections

No related papers have been registered under shared topics yet, so no intellectual links can be drawn within this Zettelkasten at present. Future notes on digital literacy, platform studies, folk theories of algorithms, and datafication would be natural neighbors to connect here.