Algorithmic management in the global gig economy: an interdisciplinary systematic literature review and critical discourse analysis

Abstract

Algorithmic management-the delegation of managerial functions to algorithmic systems has become a defining feature of work in the global gig and platform economy. This article presents a systematic literature review (SLR) of 103 scholarly sources, complemented by a targeted critical discourse analysis (CDA) to examine how algorithmic management operates across diverse regions and is discursively framed. While gig work engages millions of workers worldwide, scholarly attention has centered disproportionately on Western contexts. I develop an interdisciplinary research framework that integrates sociology, labor studies, digital economy, and law to analyze the implications of algorithmic management for labor practices, worker autonomy, and regulation. The study asks: (1) what dominant themes and findings emerge in the literature across regions and contexts; (2) how these themes are discursively framed in scholarly and policy texts; and (3) what research gaps and policy implications emerge from this synthesis. The SLR reveals several prevalent themes: the tension between promised flexibility and algorithmic control, worker resistance and agency, biases and fairness in algorithmic systems, and the influence of local institutional contexts, while the CDA uncovers how academic narratives often oscillate between portraying algorithmic management as an extension of digital Taylorism and a catalyst for novel forms of worker autonomy. This review offers contributions by mapping the state of knowledge, highlighting a critical gap in global and comparative analysis, and proposing an agenda for future research and policymaking.