CFP: Digitalization of Work and the Prospects of Democratizing the Economy

The idea that there should be greater democratic control over economic processes and institutions has been explored and defended by political philosophers with various normative commitments, including Marxists, liberal egalitarians, critical theorists, and radical republicans. However, many assumptions that inform these theories should be updated due to recent structural transformations in the economy. One such structural transformation is the increasing penetration of digital technologies into productive and reproductive activities. Data harvesting, the use of AI for automation, and surveillance technologies all radically reshape how we should understand the fundamental parameters of capitalist economies.

What counts as value creation in the digital economy? How will AI-based automation influence the balance of powers in the labor markets? To what extent do new information technologies entrench workplace hierarchies and constitute disciplinary power over workers’ agency? The kind of answers one provides for these questions dramatically changes what vision of democracy one should endorse for economic life. For example, our conception of value creation in the digital economy is likely to determine what stakeholder groups (e.g., social media prosumers) should be deemed to have a significant interest in combating exploitation and deserving special decision-making rights. Similarly, AI’s broader transformation of labor market dynamics might influence the powers and composition of the contemporary working class. The proper analysis of this development is critical when we discuss democratizing the economy in relation to agents of change. Using digital technologies to enhance surveillance and discipline is also crucial to assessing the prospects of workers’ collective agency.

However, focusing solely on the workplace risks narrowing the scope of the problem. Recent AI developments also have profound implications for the organization of reproductive labor and other forms of non-valorized work that sustain our social life. From algorithmically driven care platforms to the datafication of household labor, these technologies reshape the boundaries between productive and reproductive activities, often amplifying pre-existing inequalities and forms of exploitation. At the same time, these technologies hold significant emancipatory potential: automation could reduce the drudgery of unpaid domestic tasks, and digital platforms could provide tools for collective organization among unrecognized laborers. Exploring these dual dynamics is essential for understanding how democratic principles might extend to the whole of society, including sectors and forms of labor often overlooked in discussions of workplace democracy.

This panel aims at bringing together scholars working on these topics. It will form part of the ECPR General Conference section 'Democratic Values and Emerging Technologies in Political Theory'. 

Please submit abstracts (400 words max.) prepared for anonymous review to [email protected] and [email protected]. Include the title of the paper and your institutional affiliation in the email.  

The deadline for applications is December 15, 2024. Decisions will follow by the end of January.