Algorithms, Digital Surveillance, and the Creation of Communication Experiences on TikTok.
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.64041/riidg.v5i2.68Keywords:
Algorithms, Digital Surveillance, Privacy, Generation Z, TikTok, Communication ExperienceAbstract
This article examines how TikTok's algorithmic systems influence the communicative experiences and perceptions of digital surveillance among Generation Z users. The research departs from the recognition that the platform's algorithm largely determines the content users see, shaping personalized experiences through the continuous collection of behavioral data.
We explore how young people perceive and negotiate their privacy within a digitally surveilled environment, and how this dynamic shapes their everyday communicative practices. To do so, we applied a survey to young TikTok users and conducted semi-structured interviews in order to gain deeper insight into their perceptions, attitudes, and experiences regarding algorithmic surveillance.
Finding out that, while users acknowledge the existence of algorithmic surveillance mechanisms, these tend to be normalized in exchange for the perceived benefits of personalization and entertainment. To conclude that the relationship between algorithms, surveillance, and communicative experience on TikTok calls for greater critical digital literacy among young users.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Sofia Monserrart Villamar Acosta , Cynthia Shakira Enríquez Fierro
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