Algorithmic Stranding: Optimization Systems and the Loss of Collective Agency
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: This paper extends the Beached Whale Hypothesis by applying its ecological–cognitive framework to algorithmic governance and optimization systems. While prior research has focused on algorithmic bias, transparency, and fairness, this study argues that a more fundamental pathology lies in the externalization of agency itself. Through a structural comparison between digital nationalism and algorithmic optimization, the paper conceptualizes “algorithmic stranding” as a collective navigational failure in which neither individuals nor institutions retain effective steering capacity. The study proposes that algorithms function not as instruments of control but as resonance amplifiers that intensify directionlessness under conditions of over-coherence. By reframing algorithmic power as a symptom of agency vacuum rather than intentional domination, this paper contributes a socio-cognitive model for understanding contemporary governance failures.
Author: Akimoto, Hitoshi
Language: English
Subfield: Safety Research
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7117356099
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