Collection Overview

Humanities & Social Sciences Communications has launched a Guest-Edited Collection on Reframing artificial intelligence: critical perspectives from AI social science.

In an era increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence (AI), public and academic discourse is often dominated by polarised narratives—either heralding AI as a solution to complex problems or warning of its dangers. These framings frequently assume the inevitability of AI’s advancement, obscuring the sociocultural, political and economic forces that influence its development and use. In contrast, critical work in the social sciences has long shown that technological change is not preordained but emerges through social relations, institutional settings and cultural imaginaries as much as through scientific breakthroughs or engineering feats.

We seek to move beyond two stubborn binaries in dominant understandings of AI. The first is the opposition between technological and social determinants, which see AI as the product of either autonomous technical progress or external social pressures, rather than recognising the complex co-production of technology and society. The second is the opposition between technological optimism and pessimism, which either boost AI’s promise or subject it to criticism, neglecting multiple social realities. Against these oppositions, articles will examine how AI systems are envisioned, designed and used across diverse societal contexts. In doing so, the issue will reveal how AI reflects and reshapes existing social structures, inequalities and power dynamics.

This will be a Collection of contributions from sociology, anthropology, political science, science and technology studies, demography, education and criminology and will be open for submissions from all authors – on the condition that the manuscripts fall within the scope of the Collection and of Humanities & Social Sciences Communications more generally. We are welcoming submissions until 30th April 2026.

Why is this Collection important? 

"Like many new technologies before it, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is often portrayed as an autonomous force transforming everything in its path. This Collection showcases what the social sciences can offer in response to that narrative: critical analyses of how exactly AI enters and reshapes social worlds—and how those worlds, in turn, shape AI. The high-quality, interdisciplinary submissions gathered here aim to advance new ways of thinking about AI and to establish AI Social Science as an emerging field. We welcome critical social science contributions examining how AI is envisioned, designed, and used across diverse societal contexts." - Dr. Barbara Barbosa Neves

Why submit to a Collection? 

Collections like this one help promote high-quality science. They are led by Guest Editors, who are experts in their fields, and In-House Editors and are supported by a dedicated team of Commissioning Editors and Managing Editors at Springer Nature. Collection manuscripts typically see higher citations, downloads, and Altmetric scores, and provide a one-stop-shop on a cutting-edge topic of interest.

Who is involved? 

Guest Editor:

• Barbara Barbosa Neves, University of Sydney, Australia
• Alex Broom, University of Sydney, Australia
• Kalervo Gulson, University of Sydney, Australia
• Geoffrey Mead, University of Sydney, Australia

Internal Team:

• In-House Editor: Gino D'Oca, Humanities & Social Sciences Communications, UK
• Commissioning Editor: Michael Rimington, Fully OA Brands, Springer Nature, UK
• Managing Editor: Anthony Heron, Fully OA Brands, Springer Nature, UK

How can I submit my paper? 

Visit the Collection Page to find out more about this Collection and how to submit your article.