Making Sense and Pushing Back: Folk Theories of Social Media Algorithms in the Context of Russia’s War in Ukraine

• In Event: Digital Politics, Dissent, and Mobilization in Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia

Abstract

Social media platforms are increasingly being weaponized by malicious actors. A case in point is Ukraine, which has become a primary target of systematic, high-stakes Russian disinformation efforts that have intensified since the 2022 invasion as part of the “hybrid warfare” strategy. This strategy combines the use of conventional military force with non-military measures, including malign and subversive information campaigns. In such situations, evaluating information presents a challenge, exacerbated by the platforms’ algorithmic and personalization infrastructure. Research suggests that in navigating their informational practices, people are guided by “folk theories,” a set of intuitive explanations and predictions they develop to make sense of the world around them. Shaped by personal experiences, cultural norms, and societal influences, folk theories play a crucial role in how individuals interpret and respond to information available across social media platforms.

Drawing on a series of focus groups consisting of Ukraine-based social media users, this study explores the folk theories that people have about how platform algorithms function and how they might be weaponized by foreign actors in order to identify the factors that shape user engagement with strategic information campaigns propagated by malicious pro-Russian actors. Situated in the context of the ongoing Russia’s war in Ukraine, the study aligns with the “liberation” theme for the 2024 ASEEES convention by offering a more nuanced understanding of personal agency in countering “epistemic violence” as a necessary condition for being “freed from domination by a foreign power,” suggested by ASEEES as the possible foci for this year’s convention.

Author

• Volha Kananovich, Appalachian State U