AI and the Reimagining of Gendered Organizations: Design Perspectives on Power and Futures
A special issue of Social Sciences (ISSN 2076-0760). This special issue belongs to the section "Gender Studies".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2026 | Viewed by 3
Special Issue Editors
Interests: norm-critical design and gender; gender equality and diversity issues
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
This Special Issue explores how AI technologies, from machine learning to large language models, are shaping, reinforcing or reimagining organizational gender dynamics. As algorithms increasingly participate in decision-making, design and management, the question arises: What kinds of gendered organizational futures are we creating? And how are these blended future workplaces being imagined, anticipated and expected to function from gender and power perspectives? We invite contributions that approach the intersections of AI, organizations, gender and power through design inquiry. As such, this Special Issue engages with fields such as design sociology, design ethnography, speculative design, reflective design and norm-critical design. Topics may include (but are not limited to) the following:
- Speculative design of future workplaces and organizational systems
- Algorithmic bias and fairness in organizational decision-making
- Feminist, queer and intersectional AI imaginaries
- Creative and critical interventions into data-driven management systems
- The role of design in shaping ethical AI practices and inclusive technologies in organizations
- Organizational storytelling, foresight and the design of gendered futures
- Power dynamics in human–AI collaboration and co-design
- Methodological innovations in studying AI, design and gender relations
By engaging with diverse design fields, this issue seeks to illuminate the imaginaries, anticipations and expectations that are being designed into gendered organizational futures through AI-powered technologies, as well as how they might be designed differently to help reframe and close gender and power gaps. We strongly encourage transdisciplinary submissions and contributions.
Dr. Anna Isaksson
Prof. Dr. Vaike Fors
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Social Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- artificial intelligence (AI)
- organizational futures
- gender and power relations
- design inquiry
- speculative design
- critical and norm-critical design
- feminist and intersectional technologies
- algorithmic bias and fairness
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
- Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
- Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
- Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
- External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
- Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.
Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.
