Digital Technology and Large Data in Contemporary Social Structures

Abstract

This literature-based study examines how digital technologies and large-scale data practices reshape social structures and everyday interactions. Drawing on qualitative thematic synthesis, the study explores shifts in work relations, social solidarity, and access to welfare as experienced within digitally mediated environments. Digital systems reorganize work by introducing data-driven evaluation, flexible arrangements, and algorithmic coordination, which alter perceptions of recognition, security, and professional identity. Social interaction increasingly unfolds through networked platforms, producing new forms of connection that rely on symbolic exchange, rapid communication, and shared narratives rather than physical proximity. These patterns foster fluid solidarity while simultaneously encouraging segmentation and selective affiliation. Access to welfare and public services becomes closely tied to digital literacy and the ability to navigate automated systems, creating new lines of inclusion and exclusion. The study highlights how data-based decision processes influence perceptions of fairness and trust, as individuals often encounter opaque mechanisms that translate lived experience into numerical representation. Overall, the findings indicate that digital technology functions as a structuring force that shapes meaning, power relations, and social experience. By synthesizing established theoretical perspectives, this study provides a conceptual foundation for understanding contemporary social change driven by digital systems and data practices, offering insights for future scholarly reflection and policy-oriented discourse.