Mediation 101: A Simple Introduction
Mediation 101: A Simple Introduction
Not familiar with the mediation part of AI-mediation?
Then it may be helpful to understand what mediation (without AI contexts) so let's start there:
You may already have some familiarization with the word mediation but often, the word is commonly used in legal contexts. For example, folks might know that in a contested divorce, a mediator works between parties to settle financial disputes or custodial matters and reach some form of compromised solution.
That's one important meaning of mediation ... but it's not the only one.
For this study in particular, we care about two very specific types of mediation:
In simple terms, a mediated technology is a form of intermediary technology that influences or changes how people accomplish tasks.
In other words, mediated tech:
changes how someone completes a piece of work
influences how two or more people communicate or collaborate
shapes how someone understands, interprets, or navigates their environment
The key with mediating technology is that it's technology "sits between" a person (or people) and a task or activity. This intermediary position is what allows mediating technology to directly shape, alter, or construct our nterpretation and understanding of reality.
Psychological mediation is not a formal theory; instead it's more of a lens psychologists use to describe the ways thoughts, feelings, beliefs, experiences, and social interactions influence how people respond to the world.
In other words, our lived experiences are rarely direct. They're often filtered (or mediated) through our minds, emotions, expectations, and relationships.
For example, two neighbors hear the same barking dog; one of the two neighbors smiles when he hears the barking because he loves dogs ... but the other neighbor becomes quite anxious because they were once bitten by a dog when they were a child.
In this everyday life example, the dog barking event is the same, but each person's previous experiences mediate how they respond, what they think, and how they feel when they hear the barking sounds.
This doctoral study aims to bring these two ideas together but in the specific context of AI usage at work.
Learn more about this emerging concept and why it matters.
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