doi:10.5477/cis/ eis.190.41-60
Digi al Socie y as Seen h ough The Wo k
Expe iences o So wa e De elope s
La sociedad digi al a la luz de las expe iencias de abajo de los
desa ollado es de so wa e
Edua do Be ica and Julia Acos a
Key wo ds
Digi al Socie y
• Li ed Expe iences
• Analysis o Expe iences
• Digi alisa ion
• Sociology o Wo k
• Digi al T ans o ma ion
Abs ac
So wa e de elope s, mos o whom a e young and male, play a
key ole in he digi al ans o ma ion o ou socie ies. They ansla e
and ans e adi ional analogue ope a ions in o hei co esponding
digi al coun e pa s. Despi e he impo ance o his socially c ea i e
p ocess, i o en goes unno iced o emains hidden om he eyes
o he gene al public. Applying he analysis o li ed expe iences
me hod, he s udy analyses he digi al ans o ma ion p ocess
h ough he wo k expe iences o so wa e de elope s. Thei li e
s o ies shed ligh on key s uc u al aspec s o he digi al socie y
and e lec he ensions inhe en in his ans o ma i e p ocess. A
he same ime, hey e eal he dual o Janus- aced na u e o e e y
indi idual’s li e expe ience du ing a pe iod o p o ound socio-digi al
ans o ma ion.
Palab as cla e
Sociedad digi al
• Expe iencias de ida
• Análisis de expe iencias
• Digi alización
• Sociología del abajo
• T ans o mación digi al
Resumen
Los desa ollado es de so wa e, en su mayo ía jó enes y a ones,
desempeñan un papel cla e en la ans o mación digi al de nues as
sociedades. Ellos son quienes aducen y ans ie en las ope aciones
analógicas adicionales a su co espondien e e sión digi al. A pesa
de su impo ancia, es e inmenso p oceso de c ea i idad social suele
pasa desape cibido o pe manece ocul o a los ojos del público en
gene al. Aplicando el mé odo del Análisis de Expe iencias de Vida
(AEx), el es udio analiza el p oceso de ans o mación digi al a a és
de las expe iencias de abajo de los desa ollado es de so wa e.
Los ela os de sus i encias e elan aspec os es uc u ales cla e de
la sociedad digi al y e lejan las ensiones inhe en es a es e p oceso
ans o mado . Al mismo iempo, mues an la na u aleza dual o jánica de
la expe iencia de ida de odos los indi iduos en una época de p o unda
ans o mación sociodigi al.
Ci a ion
Be ica , Edua do; Acos a, Julia (2025). «Digi al Socie y as Seen h ough he Wo k Expe iences o
So wa e De elope s». Re is a Española de In es igaciones Sociológicas, 190: 41-60. (doi: 10.5477/cis/
eis.190.41-60)
Edua do Be ica : Uni e sidad de Se illa | [email p o ec ed]
Julia Acos a: Uni e sidad de la República (U uguay) | [email p o ec ed]
Reis. Re .Esp.In es ig.Sociol. ISSN-L: 0210-5233. N.º 190, Ap il - June 2025, pp.41-60
42 Digi al Socie y as Seen h ough The Wo k Expe iences o So wa e De elope s
Reis. Re .Esp.In es ig.Sociol. ISSN-L: 0210-5233. N.º 190, Ap il - June 2025, pp.41-60
In oduc Ion
F om he 1960s onwa ds, philosophe s
and social scien is s obse ed ha mod-
e n socie y could no be explained by i s
opposi ion o adi ional socie y alone.
This ga e ise o new heo ies o soci-
e y, such as pos -indus ial socie y
(Bell, 1973), pos -mode ni y (Lyo a d,
1979; Jameson, 1984) and liquid mode -
ni y (Bauman, 2003). The new in o ma-
ion and communica ions echnology (ICT)
eme ged as he g ea ans o ming o ces
o ha e a, leading o he concep o he
“in o ma ion socie y” (Cas ells, 1996),
which e en ually became es ablished as
he e e ence s anda d o he eme ging
social sys em (Be ica , 1996). The e also
seemed o be close a ini y be ween ICT-
based socie ies and he cul u al, social,
economic and poli ical ea u es a ibu ed
o pos -mode ni y (Be ica , 2003).
Howe e , ICT has con inued o e ol e,
leading o wha we now call “digi al soci-
e y” (Lup on, 2014). The i s h ee books
published unde he i le Digi al Sociology
(O on-Johnson and P io , 2013; Lup on,
2014; Ma es, 2017) saw he ligh o day
app oxima ely a decade ago. In he book,
Debo ah Lup on (2014: 1) la ly s a ed ha
“li e is digi al”, ha “we li e in a digi al so-
cie y”, and ha new digi al echnologies
p o oundly al e e e yday li e, social ela-
ions, go e nmen , comme ce, he econ-
omy, and he p oduc ion and dissemina-
ion o knowledge. She also no ed ha
“we ha e eached a poin whe e digi al
echnologies’ ubiqui y and pe asi eness
a e such ha hey ha e become in isible”
(Lup on, 2014: 2).
Digi al socie y has been ex ensi ely
s udied by scien is s such as Ca (2010),
who analysed he impac o he In e ne
on cogni ion, and Schwab (2016), who
explo ed he consequences o obo ics
and a i icial in elligence. O he s udies,
including hose by Pa ise (2011) and
O’Neil (2016), ha e ocused on he social
and e hical implica ions o algo i hms and
pe sonalisa ion on he In e ne . Wi hin
his new con igu a ion, digi al capi alism
(Schille , 1999; Fuchs, 2014) and pla o m
capi alism (S nicek, 2017) ha e eme ged
as sys ems in which da a and digi al
in o ma ion p ocessing ha e been he main
economic esou ces ha ha e ans o med
bo h consump ion and labou ela ions
(Casilli, 2021; Abdelnou and Medá, 2020).
Much ecen esea ch on wo k in he digi al
socie y, such as ha on he deploymen
o algo i hmic managemen and wo ke s’
esis ance o i (Dupuis, 2024; Flo os,
2024), has adop ed hese app oaches.
The e a e also many discou ses agains
he a e o social digi alisa ion, such as
Mo ozo ’s (2015) c i icism o echnological
solu ionism, a discou se ha nai ely claims
ha echnology can sol e all ou p oblems
by i sel .
This s udy aims o make a speci ic
con ibu ion o he ield o digi al socie y
esea ch by analysing he wo k-li e
expe iences o a g oup o mos ly male and
young p o essionals who play a key ole in
he unc ioning and digi al ans o ma ion o
o ganisa ions and socie y a la ge. Code s,
compu e p og amme s and so wa e
de elope s a e deemed o be he a chi ec s
and builde s o his new socie y (Thompson,
2019; Himanen, 2004). They a e, in e ec ,
in cha ge o ansla ing and ans e ing all
adi ional analogue ope a ions and ac ion
sys ems in o hei co esponding digi al
coun e pa ; his is he essence o digi al
ans o ma ion. I is ou unde s anding ha
digi al ans o ma ion is a p ocess ha
econ igu es social and wo k s uc u es,
and as such, i can be unde s ood h ough
he expe iences o hese wo ke s.
To isualise his p ocess o ana-
logue- o-digi al ansla ion which is wea -
ing he in as uc u e o he new soci-
e y and enabling digi al ans o ma ion,
Edua do Be ica and Julia Acos a 43
Reis. Re .Esp.In es ig.Sociol. ISSN-L: 0210-5233. N.º 190, Ap il - June 2025, pp.41-60
a s udy was equi ed ha ex ended be-
yond a me e analysis o he objec i e con-
di ions o wo k ac i i y. I was necessa y
o s udy he na u e o his wo k as seen
h ough he expe iences o he wo ke s
hemsel es. The analysis o hei expe i-
ences would p o ide objec i e and sub-
jec i e pa ame e s o be combined wi hin
a single iew. I would also make i pos-
sible o see he wo ke no only as a pas-
si e subjec exposed o mul iple ex e -
nal cons ain s, bu also as a subjec wi h
agency who inco po a ed hei own sub-
jec i i y in o hei wo k. Ul ima ely, he
na a i es eme ging om hei expe i-
ences would cap u e he meaning and
emo ional con en implici in hei wo k
asks and p ac ices, and would enable us
o ou line a p o o ype o cha ac e o an
indi idual in digi al ans o ma ion.
While he analysis o he li ed expe i-
ences o so wa e de elope s was he i s
objec i e o his esea ch, i was no i s ul-
ima e goal. The selec ion o hese p o es-
sionals was jus i ied because, gi en hei
key ole in his p ocess o social ans o -
ma ion, an analysis o hei pe sonal expe-
iences could e eal some key s uc u al
ea u es o digi al socie y. In o he wo ds,
we aimed o analyse he p ocess o digi al
ans o ma ion as seen h ough he expe-
iences o hese p o essionals, and o p o-
ide a sociological e lec ion on i .
The a icle is o ganised in se e al sec-
ions. The i s sec ion p o ides a de ailed
desc ip ion o he li ed expe iences anal-
ysis me hod. This is ollowed by an ide-
al- ypical syn hesis o he wo k expe i-
ence o so wa e de elope s. The hi d
sec ion engages in sociological e lec ion
on he digi al socie y based on he eigh
expe ien ial oci e ealed by he analysis.
A e p oposing h ee key ea u es o dig-
i al socie y o academic discussion, he
a icle o e s some conclusions ha link
he indings o he cu en p ocess o so-
cial digi isa ion.
he me hod: analysIs o lI ed
expe Iences (aex)
The cen al a gumen ha W igh Mills
made in his classic wo k The Sociological
Imagina ion (1959) was ha indi idual
(mic o) expe iences a e inex icably linked
o he sociohis o ical (mac o) con ex ,
and he e o e, knowledge o indi idual
expe iences necessa ily leads o knowledge
o social s uc u es. Using his e minology,
p i a e pe sonal oubles a e connec ed o
public social issues. In sho , o Mills, he
undamen al ask o a sociologis is o make
he links be ween he wo le els o eali y
in elligible.
Al hough expe ience as an on ological
and epis emological ca ego y has gi en ise
o much philosophical e lec ion, as well as
o endless deba es mo i a ed by i s inhe -
en ly polysemic na u e (Jay, 2005), his is
no usually he explici and p ima y objec
o sociological esea ch. So a , wi h some
excep ions, i has no been he ocus o im-
po an me hodological deba es in he ield
ei he .
The analysis o li ed expe iences ha
was used in his esea ch p esupposes ha
he obse a ion and unde s anding o he
expe iences o speci ic indi iduals o e s a
dis inc i e way o unde s anding social phe-
nomena. This me hod is inspi ed by he idea
o expe ience ha John Dewey de eloped
in A as Expe ience (1934). Ins ead o e e -
ing o human exis ence in gene al, he e-
e ed o “an expe ience”, i.e. o speci ic li e
expe iences, li ed by speci ic indi iduals.
Examples included going on a jou ney, sol -
ing a p oblem, enjoying a wo k o a , un-
de going an illness o ha ing a job in e iew.
The li es o indi iduals do no consis
o an undi e en ia ed, con inuous and cha-
o ic low o ac s and e en s wi hou uni y,
o de o meaning: human beings w ap ou
li es in o expe iences. As we do when mo -
ing o ano he house, we o ganise all ou
44 Digi al Socie y as Seen h ough The Wo k Expe iences o So wa e De elope s
Reis. Re .Esp.In es ig.Sociol. ISSN-L: 0210-5233. N.º 190, Ap il - June 2025, pp.41-60
hings in o boxes con aining a di e se se
o i ems ha bea a ela ionship o each
o he wi hin ou li e. Each expe ience, ha
is, an indi idual expe ience, includes ac s,
objec s, people, ela ionships, ideas, emo-
ions, memo ies, ac ions, judgemen s, acci-
den s, desi es, places o d eams ha sub-
jec i ely con igu e a uni ied and cohe en
li e space, a imeline ha can be cap u ed
by a na a i e o a s o y, and a meaning e-
lec ed in he emo ional con en o he expe-
ience.
The key me hodological ea u es o he
analysis o li ed expe iences a e as ollows:
- I gi es p imacy o subjec i i y. I s ud-
ies social eali y as i is li ed, pe cei ed,
hough abou , el , imagined, e alua ed
o desi ed by indi iduals (phenomeno-
logical pe spec i e).
- I is based on he obse a ion o con-
c e e social eali ies, o ac s o e en s
ha happen o speci ic people (empi i-
cis p inciple).
- I conside s human expe iences as com-
ple e and complex li e p ocesses, whose
na u e and dynamics depend on he se
o elemen s hey con ain (holis ic ap-
p oach).
- I does no app oach o p ejudge he na-
u e o he phenomena unde s udy us-
ing a closed sys em o p e-es ablished
ideas o heo ies (p inciple o openness).
- I ocuses on hose aspec s o he wo ld
ha he subjec conside s emo ionally
ele an (indi idual-cen ed iew).
Many social sciences and sociology
esea che s ha e ocused hei wo k
on he indi idual and collec i e s udy
o expe iences. Pa adigma ic examples
include Thompson’s (1978) analysis o
expe ience in he o ma ion o he English
wo king class; Collins’ (1986, 1990)
epis emological alue o expe ience in
he empowe men o A ican Ame ican
women; Dube ’s (2010, 2011) s udies o he
social expe ience o young people in he
F ench subu bs; and Rosa’s (2019) c i ical
sociology, which places esonan in con as
o aliena ing expe iences. In he ield o
wo k, a a ie y o wo ke s’ expe iences
ha e been in es iga ed. A classic s udy
is ha by Bu awoy (1979), who analysed
how wo ke s consen ed o o esis ed he
labou condi ions imposed by capi al in
ac o y p ocesses. Simila ly, Flo os (2024)
examined how domes ic cleaning pla o m
wo ke s expe ience and esis algo i hmic
managemen . Al hough ou s udy on wo k
expe ience is mo e limi ed, we belie e i is
s ill ele an .
The analysis o li ed expe iences, in-
spi ed by p agma is and phenomenological
app oaches, combines me hodological o i-
en a ions om na a i e analysis, g ounded
heo y and li e his o y heo y. Howe e , i is
a dis inc i e app oach, as i b ings he o-
cus o sociological esea ch on o he s udy
o speci ic expe iences. Unlike li e his o-
ies, which usually ake a biog aphical ap-
p oach, he analysis o li ed expe iences
does no ake he li e o an indi idual as
i s objec o s udy. The a icle by Cha iez
(2012) p o ided an excellen syn hesis o
he li e his o y me hod. This me hod seeks
o unde s and a pe son o pe sons by com-
piling each and e e y one o he changes
ha ha e occu ed h oughou hei li es,
combined wi h an analysis o hei own in-
e p e a ions and li e na a i es. Howe e ,
unlike li e his o ies, which a e pa o he bi-
og aphical app oach, he objec o s udy
o he analysis o li ed expe iences is no
people o indi iduals, bu he expe iences
hemsel es, whe he li ed indi idually o
collec i ely. Al hough some p ac ical a eas
use he s udy o speci ic expe iences, such
as consume expe iences (Ca u and Co a,
2007) o empa hy maps (G ay, B own and
Macanu o, 2010), he analysis o li ed ex-
pe iences does no pu sue a comme cial o
u ili a ian pu pose, bu a he con ibu es o
Edua do Be ica and Julia Acos a 45
Reis. Re .Esp.In es ig.Sociol. ISSN-L: 0210-5233. N.º 190, Ap il - June 2025, pp.41-60
he knowledge and unde s anding o ele-
an social phenomena.
The me hodological design ollowed in-
cluded h ee phases: 1) selec ing, con ac -
ing and in e iewing p o essionals; 2) con-
s uc ing a wo k expe ience na a i e o
each wo ke om he ma e ial collec ed
om hese in e iews; and 3) subsequen ly
analysing hese li ed na a i es in o de o
ex ac bo h an ideal- ypical syn hesis o
hei expe ience and hei key expe ien ial
ocuses.
In o al, i een IT p o essionals in-
ol ed in so wa e de elopmen we e in-
e iewed and hei wo k expe iences e-
cons uc ed. Mos o hem we e enginee s,
p og amme s o so wa e de elope s, who
had wo k links wi h companies o di e -
en sizes in Spain and ab oad, mainly in
he Uni ed S a es and Ge many. In his i s
s udy, men aged wen y- h ee o o y we e
selec ed. The choice o his ype o sample
was due o he p edominan demog aphics
in his echnology sec o , whe e he majo -
i y o wo ke s a e young men. Acco ding
o da a om he 2023 S ack O e low De-
elope Su ey, 84.6% o de elope s we e
unde 44 yea s old, compa ed o 49.3%
o he o al wo king popula ion in Spain,
acco ding o INE da a (Q2 2023). In addi-
ion, he S ack O e low De elope Su ey
in 2022 e ealed ha 91% o de elope s
in Spain we e male. This choice he e o e
made i possible o accu a ely cap u e he
ypical expe iences o his g oup, which
cu en ly lies a he ope a ional co e o dig-
i al ans o ma ion.
Rec ui men was ca ied ou ia he
LinkedIn pla o m. The Sales Na iga o
e sion enabled us o selec he sec o
(so wa e de elopmen ) and geog aphic
loca ion (Spain). The semi-s uc u ed in-
e iews, which las ed be ween i y and
se en y- i e minu es, ocused on wo k ex-
pe ience. They ook place be ween 6 and
22 Feb ua y 2023.
he wo kIng expe Ience o he
so wa e de elope s
In he book The Co osion o Cha ac e ,
Richa d Senne (2000) a gued ha a me e
change in he a icula ion o ime in he new
capi alism, compa ed o he p eceding in-
dus ial capi alism, has impo an pe sonal
consequences. F om a socie y based on
he long e m, which made i possible o
implemen s able pe sonal p ojec s, es ab-
lish solid social ies and de elop a sense
o e hics ha could be ansmi ed ac oss
gene a ions, he e has been a shi o a so-
cie y buil a ound he sho e m, in which
people a e a he me cy o changing winds,
weak social ies, lack o us , lack o com-
mi men s, mul iple unce ain ies, gene al-
ised ulne abili y and a adical con ingency
ha a ec s all a eas o exis ence. By con-
as ing he li e expe iences o En ico, a
humble cleane in an inne -ci y o ice build-
ing, wi h hose o his son Rico, an elec i-
cal enginee ing g adua e who enjoyed mo e
han accep able p o essional success, Sen-
ne p esen ed he hesis o he co osion
o cha ac e . In he empo al condi ions o
he new capi alism, i is almos impossible
o eel o belie e ha pe sonal expe ience,
now composed o a me e agg ega ion o
disjoin ed episodes, can a icula e a com-
ple e and cohe en biog aphical na a i e
ha gi es su icien meaning and consis -
ency o li e.
Following Senne , and ecognising he
cen al ole hey play in he ope a ional co e
o digi al ans o ma ion, we analysed he
wo k expe iences and pe sonal quali ies o
so wa e de elope s. This was based on he
unde s anding ha he ensions hey ex-
pe ience may e eal some elemen s o he
e hos ha cha ac e ise con empo a y in-
di iduals. The e o e, we ou line below he
ideal Webe ian ype o wo k expe ience o
hese p o essionals. In gene al, gi en hei
high quali ica ions, hei high ma ke powe ,
he demand o hei se ices and he high
46 Digi al Socie y as Seen h ough The Wo k Expe iences o So wa e De elope s
Reis. Re .Esp.In es ig.Sociol. ISSN-L: 0210-5233. N.º 190, Ap il - June 2025, pp.41-60
in ellec ual con en o hei asks, he in-
e iewees’ na a i es p o ide an idealised
iew o he p o ession. Howe e , benea h
he idyllic one o hei aes he ic expe i-
ences, majo p oblems and job dissa is ac-
ion loom la ge.
The ideal- ypical expe ience
The li ed wo k expe ience o so wa e de-
elope s essen ially e ol es a ound he
ask o designing so wa e by using app o-
p ia e languages and logical s uc u es, he
code ha unde pins he ope a ion o appli-
ca ions1.
This goal is una ainable by me ely pe -
o ming ou ine asks, as he e a e no eci-
pes o p o ocols applicable o he design
and cons uc ion o he so wa e ha each
cus ome demands. In gene al, hey ha e o
c ea e some hing om no hing, which equi-
es a g ea deal o e o , in ellec ual capa-
ci y and ingenui y.
They mus ind solu ions and sol e p o-
blems (solu ion-o ien ed job). These asks
a e usually as di icul as hey a e complex,
and con inuously acing hese challenges
pu s hem unde cons an s ess.
As he echnologies hey wo k wi h a e
cons an ly changing, hey need o keep up
wi h new de elopmen s li e ally on a daily
basis. They mus be sel - augh and lea n as
hey go along. The swo d o Damocles han-
ging o e hei heads is bo h p o essional
and pe sonal obsolescence. The speed o
change is such ha he ea o being le be-
hind, o s anded, causes hem in ense un-
ce ain y and anxie y.
1 This sec ion p o ides a e y concise syn hesis o he
ull analysis o he li ed wo k expe iences o hese p o-
essionals. In o de o ocus he eade ’s a en ion ap-
p op ia ely, all e ms e e ing o concep ual ca ego ies
o key pa ame e s o his ideal- ypical expe ience a e
included in i alics.
Howe e , hei compu e skills, as well
as hei abili y o design code using he
mos ad anced echnologies, gi e hem
conside able ma ke powe and a g ea deal
o sa is ac ion de i ed om he social u ili y
o hei knowledge.
Achie emen s a e a key elemen o hei
expe ience. The passion hey b ing o hei
wo k, he en husiasm wi h which hey ackle
hei asks and he enjoymen hey ind in
hei p o ession a e pa ly uelled by he
sel -es eem and emo ional ene gy ‘boos s’
hey expe ience om he success o hei
p ojec s. Achie emen s d i e he commi -
men and in insic mo i a ion ha is c i ical
in hei p o essional oles, as hese occupa-
ions demand s ong engagemen om he
wo ke ’s subjec i i y.
So wa e de elope s deeply admi e col-
leagues who ha e been able o c ea e e y
complex, ye elegan , simple and unc ional
s uc u es. They eel a kind o awe and de-
o ion o a job well done. They alue excel-
lence.
The logic o so wa e is an incomp e-
hensible mys e y o he use s o hei p o-
g ammes, bu hey know e y well, and see
on a daily basis, ha he magic is e ec i e
and wo ks. Thanks o apps, digi al soci-
e y ci izens can pe o m a mul i ude o ex-
emely complex asks in a simple o qua-
si-au oma ic way. When hei cus ome s o
use s ecognise he p ac ical use ulness and
good unc ioning o hei codes, hey eel
special, impo an , use ul and ul illed, bo h
pe sonally and p o essionally.
Being app ecia ed by cus ome s is a
p iceless emo ional ewa d. I is also e -
idences ha hey unde s ood and ad-
d essed he cus ome ’s exac equi emen s
success ully, p o ing ha hei p og ammed
c ea u e has come o li e and ope a es in
he eal wo ld. In his way, hey eel like ue
c ea o s. Wo k, a om consis ing o he
me e pe o mance o a se ies o ins umen-
al and objec i e asks, is ans o med in o
Edua do Be ica and Julia Acos a 47
Reis. Re .Esp.In es ig.Sociol. ISSN-L: 0210-5233. N.º 190, Ap il - June 2025, pp.41-60
an au hen ic aes he ic expe ience (Dewey,
2005), he consumma ion o which p o-
okes immense joy.
The success ul comple ion o hei p o-
jec s depends s ic ly on his mu a ion o
hei wo k, which now akes on a pe sonal
and subjec i e na u e. So wa e de elop-
e s app oach hei wo k p ojec s om a
s ong, in ol ed, ee, c ea i e and sel -de-
e mined I.
Companies, la ge o small, encou age
he subjec i ica ion and indi idua ion o
wo ke s by g an ing hem b oad au onomy
o e hei means o labou , bu only p o-
ided ha hey apply hem o he ends ex-
ogenously se by hem. The codes hey c e-
a e mus se e he pu pose se by some
boss o cus ome (powe p inciple), and
hey mus p ede e mine se s o ope a ions
ha i and unc ion in objec i e eali y ( eal-
i y p inciple).
Judging by hei accoun s, de elop-
e s a e no e y awa e o he con adic ion
be ween wo ke subjec i i y (au onomy o
means) and ex e nal, objec i e cons ain s
(he e onomy o ends). Al hough hey eel
hey a e scien is s and a is s, hey do no
enjoy he same eedom in hei choice o
goals.
De elope s assume ha , like ma hema -
ics and logic, he codes hey c ea e a e
p is ine, pu e and pe ec . Bu hei wo k
expe ience epea edly con i ms ha hey
a e no wi hou e o . Code ailu es ha can
cause se ious mal unc ions and di e con-
sequences o cus ome s and use s a e
known as inciden s. These a e u gen p ob-
lems ha need o be ackled immedia ely
and cause hem a high le el o wo k- ela ed
s ess.
These p o essionals eel like hey a e de-
miu ges. Bu , like he es o he gods, hey
ne e imagine ha hey will ha e o ace he
e il ha hey hemsel es, albei unknow-
ingly, b ing in o hei c ea u es. The ideal
wo ld o which compu e codes aspi e, like
gene ic, mo al o legal codes, exis s only in
he mind o hei c ea o .
Despi e he s eng h o hei “sel ”, and
he hegemonic discou ses unde pinning job
indi idua ion, de elope s a e acu ely awa e
o hei pe sonal limi a ions and hei inabil-
i y o ackle p ojec s alone. Hence he ap-
p ecia ion hey show o colleagues in hei
wo k eam and o he membe s o hei
p o essional communi y.
P ojec s a e he basic unc ional uni s o
hei socio-p oduc i e sys em. They sup-
po hei aes he ic expe iences, keep in in-
sic mo i a ion ali e and se e business pu -
poses as an indi idualised mode o labou
ma ke en y ha allows he agmen a ion
o his powe ul p o essional g oup.
While so wa e de elope s end o enjoy
good objec i e wo king condi ions, hey a -
ach g ea impo ance o he subjec i e na-
u e o wo k pe o mance, which mus be in
line wi h hei alues, desi es and demands.
The job mus o e hem he oppo uni y o
expe ience he wo k as an aes he ic expe-
ience.
Flexibili y a wo k, he sense o eedom,
he op ion o wo king om home, o eeling
espec ed, o doing uly use ul hings, he
balance be ween wo k and pe sonal li e, he
oppo uni y o a el, he abili y o choose
p ojec s hey like and a e in e es ed in, and
he sea ch o meaning a e some o hei
wo k demands, which hey iden i y as being
li e demands.
In addi ion o he alue hey place on
wo k eams, hey ha e a deep sense o be-
longing o a global, open, ee and collab-
o a i e communi y o p og amme s. These
indi idualised wo ke s ind in his commu-
ni y he ins umen al suppo hey need o
o e come hei p o essional challenges, in
he o m o guides, knowledge, echniques
and ways o doing hings.
In he ace o he unease gene a ed by
he cons uc ion o a wo ld mo ing owa ds
an unknown des ina ion, his imagined
48 Digi al Socie y as Seen h ough The Wo k Expe iences o So wa e De elope s
Reis. Re .Esp.In es ig.Sociol. ISSN-L: 0210-5233. N.º 190, Ap il - June 2025, pp.41-60
and ideal communi y, wi h i s ules, s ug-
gles be ween wo ld iews, gu us and e en
p ophe s, ins ils in hem a collec i e sense
o mission.
The weigh o esponsibili y ha hese
p o essionals assume as a chi ec s o he
new digi al socie y is also palpable in hei
accoun s o hei wo k expe iences.
ocI o expe Ience In dIgI al
socIe y
Eigh oci we e iden i ied in he accoun s
made by he so wa e de elope s abou
hei wo k expe iences. These can be a
s a ing poin om which o sociologically
e lec on digi al socie y. The oci o expe i-
ence a e loca ions whe e li e ene gies con-
e ge om a ious ields and sou ces. They
emi enough ligh o illumina e aspec s o
eali y ha migh o he wise go unno iced
o emain hidden. This is why Dube (2010)
called o a ui ul dialogue be ween expe-
ienced eali y and sociological knowledge.
Collins (1986: 29) a gued ha expe ien ial
eali y p o ides as a alid sou ce o knowl-
edge o c i iquing sociological ac s and
heo ies, while “sociological hough o e s
new ways o seeing ha expe ienced eal-
i y”. Fo hem, expe ience and sociological
heo y a e on he same le el and comple-
men each o he .
The p inciples o empi icism and open-
ness ha cha ac e ise he li ed expe iences
me hod made i possible o cap u e con a-
dic o y elemen s o expe ience simul ane-
ously wi hin he same poin o he esea ch
p ocess, he eby e ealing i s undamen-
al duali y. The ou oci shown on he le in
Figu e 1 belong o he domain o subjec i -
i y, agency and indi idua ion, and each o
hem is placed in opposi ion o each o he
ou oci on he igh , belonging o he do-
main o objec i i y, s uc u e and collec i -
i y. Each subjec i e ocus is appea s in op-
posi ion o an objec i e one, and bo h a e
cons i u i e pa s o he expe ience.
The expe ience o indi iduals in socie-
ies ha a e expe iencing a digi al ans o -
ma ion has a Janus- aced na u e. The me -
apho o he god Janus, he god who ga e
his name o he beginning o he yea (Jan-
ua y), he wo- aced god, he god o doo s
h ough which one en e s and exi s, he god
o changes, s eps and ans o ma ions, he
god o beginnings and endings, makes o al
sense he e because all indi iduals, including
so wa e de elope s, pa icipa e and play
a ole o builde s in he c ea ion o a new
wo ld.
The pe sonal expe ience o he challenge
and he algo i hmic code as a new social
ins i u ion
The Dic iona y o he Royal Academy o
he Spanish Language (RAE) de ines chal-
lenge as “an objec i e o unde aking ha
is di icul o ca y ou , which he e o e con-
s i u es a s imulus and a es o he pe -
son who aces i ”. So wa e de elope s ind
o e coming a challenge e y s imula ing;
in hei case, his akes he o m o inding
p og amming solu ions ha make i possi-
ble o implemen a p ede e mined chain o
ope a ions (job-o ien ed job). Luis2 (12/16)
“likes challenges he mos ”, “o e coming
hem gi es him comple e sa is ac ion”. Juan
(11/16) de ined his wo k as “cons an ly ac-
ing new and di e en challenges”. And Alex
(5/22) compa ed his wo k o ma hema ics:
“ he e is a p oblem and you look o a solu-
ion”.
Wi hou challenges, bo h li e and wo k
slide dange ously down he slope o mean-
inglessness, mono ony, bo edom and e-
2 All names a e ic i ious. The da a in b acke s co es-
pond o he coding used in he na a i es. The i s digi
is he code alloca ed o he esponden , and he second
digi o he pa ag aph numbe .
Edua do Be ica and Julia Acos a 49
Reis. Re .Esp.In es ig.Sociol. ISSN-L: 0210-5233. N.º 190, Ap il - June 2025, pp.41-60
dium. Mee ing challenges mi iga es he dis-
enchan men o he wo ld denounced by
Webe (1905) and masks he des uc ion o
expe ience an icipa ed by Benjamin (1973).
I aligns wi h he sys em’s need o os e in-
insic mo i a ions ha wholly engage he
subjec and p omo es he explo a ion o in-
no a i e app oaches du ing he socio-dig-
i al ans o ma ion phase. O e coming
challenges is a key ocus o con empo a y
expe ience. Acco ding o Dube (2010), he
decline o ins i u ions means ha indi iduals
ha e o pe sonally a icula e mul iple logics
o ac ion and ace he ensuing challenges.
In he same ein, Ma uccelli and San iago
(2017) e hough he con empo a y indi id-
ual om he pe spec i e o he sociology o
social challenges.
The objec i e, s uc u al and collec i e
dimension o expe ience appea s as soon
as we ocus ou gaze on he p oduc o
wo k. Codes (algo i hms, p og ammes, pla -
o ms) p e-o de and p ede e mine in ini e
chains o ope a ions o he social sys em.
So wa e appea s o be in angible, bu i
pa adoxically becomes ma e ialised as an
ex ensi e and dense ne wo k o codes ha
make up he in as uc u e o digi al socie y,
a kind o unde g ound sewage sys em. The
o e lowing subjec i i y o he challenge is
pou ed in o he unappealable objec i i y o
he code, which wea es coe ci e s uc u es
in o a peculia i on cage.
No only well-known apps and pla o ms
like Ne lix, TikTok, Ube , Spo i y, Tinde ,
Pho oshop and Cha GPT, bu also hou-
sands o o he digi al ope a o s we use daily
in speci ic ac i i y en i onmen s, o ganise
a ailable op ions, p ede e mine possible
ac ions, and sub ly in luence ou decisions
wi hou ou being awa e o i . Each o hese
digi al ope a o s, be hey algo i hms, appli-
ca ions o pla o ms, in oduce changes in
FIGURE 1. Foci o expe ience o so wa e de elope s
Sou ce: P epa ed by he au ho s.
Challenges
Communi yIndi idual
Achie emen s
C ea i i y
E o s
U ili y
Codes
56 Digi al Socie y as Seen h ough The Wo k Expe iences o So wa e De elope s
Reis. Re .Esp.In es ig.Sociol. ISSN-L: 0210-5233. N.º 190, Ap il - June 2025, pp.41-60
i hms now cons i u es he eal ins i u ional
in as uc u e o he new digi al socie y.
The cha m o digi alisa ion lies in i s e -
iciency, as i allows e y complex asks o
be ca ied ou in a cos -e ec i e, au oma ic
and simple way. Bu he g ea es dange
comes om he ac ha he black box a
i s ope a ional co e is ou side public con-
ol and ha i d as ically and apidly ans-
o ms he way we do e e y hing. The so-
cial sciences mus he e o e edouble hei
e o s o unde s and and make clea bo h
li e in digi al socie y and he social conse-
quences o any digi alisa ion p ocess. In
sho , we should encou age public a en ion
and social ale mechanisms ha allow o
democ a ic and c i ical con ol o be placed
o e his p o ound social ans o ma ion.
Gi en he socio-demog aphic p o ile
o oday’s so wa e wo ke s, his p ocess
o algo i hmic c ea ion is almos en i ely
domina ed by young, male IT p o essionals,
which esul s in women and olde people
being excluded om he digi al con igu a-
ion o socie y. The li ed wo k expe iences
eco ded in his s udy a e he e o e he ex-
pe iences o he young, male de elope s
ha he sys em uses o i s de elopmen .
Rega ding his bla an social exclusion, wo
undamen al asks emain o be add essed.
On he one hand, he wo k expe iences o
women and olde people in ol ed in he de-
elopmen o so wa e should be analysed.
On he o he hand, he condi ions ha ex-
plain his occupa ional seg ega ion should
be in es iga ed, as well as he educa ional
and social policies ha could elimina e i . In
sho , i is impe a i e o ind ways o b ing-
ing women and olde people in o he ope a-
ional co e o social digi alisa ion.
BIBlIog aphy
Abdelnou , Sa a and Medá, Dominique (2020).
Cuando u je e es una app. Na a a: Ka a ak.
Bauman, Zigmund (2003). Mode nidad liquida. Bue-
nos Ai es: Fondo de Cul u a Económica de A -
gen ina.
Bell, Daniel (1976) [1973]. El ad enimien o de la so-
ciedad pos indus ial. Mad id: Edi o ial Alianza.
Benjamin, Wal e (1973). Discu sos In e umpidos I.
Mad id: Edi o ial Tau us.
Be ica , Edua do (1996). “La sociedad de la in o -
mación. Tecnología, cul u a y sociedad”. Re-
is a Española de In es igaciones Sociológicas,
76:99-121.
Be ica , Edua do (2003). “F agmen os de la ealidad
posmode na”. Re is a Española de In es igacio-
nes Sociológicas, 102:9-46.
Buche , Taina (2018).I ...Then: Algo i hmic Powe
and Poli ics. Ox o d S udies in Digi al Poli ics.
doi: 10.1093/oso/9780190493028.001.0001
Bu awoy, Michael (1979). Manu ac u ing Consen :
Changes in he Labo P ocess unde Monopoly
Capi alism. Chicago: Uni e si y o Chicago P ess.
Ca , Nicholas (2010). The Shallows: Wha he In e -
ne Is Doing o Ou B ains. New Yo k: W. W. No -
on & Company.
Ca u, An onella and Co a, Be na d (2007). Consu-
ming Expe ience. London: Rou ledge.
Casilli, An onio (2021). En a endan les obo s: en-
quê e su le a ail du clic. Essais. Pa is: Édi ions
Poin s.
Cas ells, Manuel (1996). La e a de la in o mación.
Economía, sociedad y cul u a. (Vol. 1). México:
Siglo XXI.
Cha iez Co de o, May a (2012). “His o ias de ida:
Una me odología de in es igación cuali a i a”.
Re is a G io , 5(1):50-67.
Cocco, Giuseppe and Oli ei a Vila im, Gil an de
(2009). “T abalho ima e ial e p odução de so -
wa e no capi alismo cogni i o”. Liinc em Re is a,
5(2):148-151. doi: 10.18617/liinc. 5i2.315
Collins, Pa icia Hill (1986). “Lea ning om he Ou -
side Wi hin: The Sociological Signi icance o
Black Feminis Though ”. Social P oblems,
33(6):14-32.
Collins, Pa icia Hill (1990). Black Feminis Though .
Knowledge, Consciousness, and he Poli ics o
Empowe men . Bos on: Unwin Hyman.
Collins, Randall (2004). In e ac ion Ri ual Chains. P in-
ce on, New Je sey: P ince on Uni e si y P ess.
Csikszen mihalyi, Mihaly (1990). The Psychology o
Op imal Expe ience. New Yo k: Ha pe & Row,
Publishe s.
Edua do Be ica and Julia Acos a 57
Reis. Re .Esp.In es ig.Sociol. ISSN-L: 0210-5233. N.º 190, Ap il - June 2025, pp.41-60
Dewey, John (2005) [1934]. A as Expe ience. New
Yo k: Penguin Books.
Dube , F ançois (2010). Sociología de la expe iencia.
Mad id: Cen o de In es igaciones Sociológicas.
Dube , F ançois (2011). La expe iencia sociológica.
Ba celona: Gedisa.
Dupuis, Ma hieu (2024). “Algo i hmic Managemen
and Con ol a Wo k in a Manu ac u ing sec-
o : Wo kplace Regime, Union Powe and Sho-
p loo Con lic o e Digi aliza ion”. New Techno-
logy, Wo k and Employmen : 1-21. doi: 10.1111/
n we.12298
Flo os, Kons an inos (2024). “Re hinking Algo i hmic
managemen in Mino Key: The Case o House-
cleaning Pla o m Labou in Denma k”. Pla o ms
& Socie y, 1. doi: 10.1177/29768624241273468
Fuchs, Ch is ian (2014). Social Media: A C i ical in-
oduc ion.London: Sage.
Gabelas-Ba oso, An onio; Ga cía-Ma ín, Da id and
Apa ici, Robe o (coo ds.) (2023). La in asión del
algo i mo. Ba celona: Gedisa.
G ay, Da id; B own, Suni and Macanu o, James
(2010). Games o ming: A Playbook o Inno a-
o s, Ruleb eake s, and Changemake s. Cali o -
nia: O’Reilly Media.
Himanen, Pekka (2004). La é ica del hacke y el espí-
i u de la e a de la in o mación. Ba celona: Des ino.
Himanen, Pekka (2012). La é ica hacke . A aila-
ble a : h ps://globalizacionydemoc acia.udp.
cl/wp-con en /uploads/2014/03/PEKKA_HIMA-
NEN_2012.pd , access June 16, 2024.
Jameson, F ede ic (1984). Pos mode nismo o he
Cul u al Logic o La e Capi alism. Ox o d: New
Le Re iew L d.
Jay, Ma in (2005). Songs o Expe ience. Mode n
Ame ican and Eu opean Va ia ions on a Uni e sal
Theme. Be keley: Uni e si y o Cali o nia P ess.
Jiménez González, Ai o and Rendueles Menéndez
de Llano, Césa (2020). “Capi alismo digi al: a-
gilidad social, explo ación y solucionismo ecno-
lógico”. Teknocul u a, 17(2):95-101.
Land, Nick (2014). «#Accele a e». A ailable a :
h ps://syn he icedi ice.wo dp ess.com/wp-con-
en /uploads/2013/06/accele a e.pd , access
June 18, 2024.
Lup on, Debo ah (2014). Digi al Sociology. London:
Rou ledge.
Lyo a d, Jean (1998) [1979]. La condición pos mo-
de na. In o me sob e el sabe . Mad id: Ediciones
Cá ed a.
Ma es, Noo je (2017). Digi al Sociology: The Rein-
en ion o Social Resea ch. London: Wiley.
Ma uccelli, Danilo and San iago, José (2017). El de-
sa ío sociológico hoy. Mad id: Cen o de In es i-
gaciones Sociológicas.
Mo ozo , E geny (2015). La locu a del solucionismo
ecnológico. Mad id: Ka z.
O’Neil, Ca hy (2016). Weapons o Ma h Des uc ion:
How Big Da a Inc eases Inequali y and Th ea ens
Democ acy. New Yo k: C own.
O on-Johnson, Ka e and P io , Nike (eds.) (2013).
Digi al Sociology: C i ical Pe spec i es. Basings-
oke: Palg a e-McMillan.
Pa ise , Eli (2011). The Fil e Bubble: Wha he In e -
ne is Hiding om You. New Yo k: Penguin P ess.
Pesole, Anna os; U zí, Cesi a; Fe nández-Macías,
En ique; Biagi, Fede ico and González Vázquez,
Ignacio (2018). Pla o m Wo ke s in Eu ope.
Luxembou g: Publica ions O ice o he Eu o-
pean Union. A ailable a : h ps://publica ions.j c.
ec.eu opa.eu/ eposi o y/handle/JRC112157, ac-
cess Decembe 4, 2023.
Reckwi z, And eas (2017). The In en ion o C ea i-
i y. Camb idge: Poli y P ess.
Riesman, Da id (1964). La muchedumb e soli a ia.
Buenos Ai es: Paidós.
Rosa, Ha mu (2019). Resonancia. Una sociología de
la elación con el mundo. Capellades: Ka z.
Rueda, An onio; Méndez, Juan José; T inidad, Pablo
and Collado, Luis (2023). Empleabilidad y alen o
digi al. Índice de Talen o Digi al 2022. Edición V.
Mad id: Fundación Uni e sidad Au ónoma de
Mad id y Fundación VASS. A ailable a : h ps://
uam.es/wp-con en /uploads/2023/07/In o me-
Talen o-Digi al-2022.pd , access Augus 21, 2023.
Ruoppa, Raine (2019). “John Dewey’s Theo y o
Aes he ic Expe ience: B idging he Gap Be ween
A s and Sciences”. Open Philosophy, 2(1):59-
74. doi: 10.1515/opphil-2019-0007
Schille , Dan (1999). Digi al Capi alism: Ne wo king
he Global Ma ke Sys em. Camb idge: The MIT
P ess.
Schwab, Klaus (2016). La cua a e olución indus-
ial. Mad id: Deba e.
Senne , Richa d (2000). La co osión del ca ác e .
Ba celona: Anag ama.
Simmel, Geo g (2002) [1911]. Sob e la a en u a. En-
sayos ilosó icos. Ba celona: Península.
S nicek, Nick (2018). Capi alismo de pla a o mas.
Buenos Ai es: Caja Neg a.
58 Digi al Socie y as Seen h ough The Wo k Expe iences o So wa e De elope s
Reis. Re .Esp.In es ig.Sociol. ISSN-L: 0210-5233. N.º 190, Ap il - June 2025, pp.41-60
Thompson, Cli e (2019). Code s: The Making o a New
T ibe and he Remaking o he Wo ld. New Yo k:
Penguin P ess.
Thompson, Edwa d Palme (1978). The Po e y o
Theo y & O he Essays. London: Me lin.
Unión Eu opea (2023). 2030 Digi al Compass: he
Eu opean way o he Digi al Decade. A aila-
ble a : h ps://commission.eu opa.eu/docu-
men /download/9 c32029-7a 3-4ea2-8b7a-
4cd283e8e89e_en? ilename=cella _12e835e2-
81a -11eb-9ac9-01aa75ed71a1.0001.02_DOC_1.
pd &p e Lang=es, access June 10, 2024.
Webe , Max (2012) [1905]. La é ica p o es an e y el
espí i u del capi alismo. Mad id: Alianza.
Williams, Alex and S nicek, Nick (2013). Acele a.
Mani ies o po una polí ica acele acionis a. A ai-
lable a : h ps://syn he icedi ice.wo dp ess.com/
wp-con en /uploads/2013/08/mani ies o-acele-
acionis a1.pd , access June 15, 2024.
W igh Mills, Cha les (1961). La imaginación socioló-
gica. México: Fondo de Cul u a Económica.
Za a, Rosa io (2017). El en usiasmo. P eca iedad y
abajo c ea i o en la e a digi al. Ba celona: Ana-
g ama.
Zubo , Shoshana (2019). The Age o Su eillance
Capi alism: The Figh o a Human Fu u e a he
New F on ie o Powe . New Yo k: PublicA ai s.
RECEPTION: Feb ua y 12, 2024
REVIEW: May 27, 2024
ACCEPTANCE: Oc obe 11, 2024
