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arXiv · 2603.10756

A Survey on Algorithmic Interventions in Opinion Dynamics

Atsushi Miyauchi·Yuko Kuroki·Federico Cinus·Stefan Neumann·Francesco Bonchi
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Abstract

Social media platforms have become critical infrastructures for public communication, where large-scale interaction can both support socially beneficial collective pressure and amplify polarization and conflict. While opinion-dynamics research has long modeled how beliefs evolve through interpersonal influence, the central challenge for healthier online environments increasingly lies in algorithmic interventions: mechanisms that steer collective opinion toward desirable outcomes or dampen harmful dynamics. This survey offers a structured synthesis of this fast-growing, interdisciplinary literature. We organize prior work by the objective optimized -- overall opinion (e.g., consensus or mean opinion), polarization and disagreement, and other quantities -- and review the associated optimization formulations and representative algorithms with mathematical rigor. We also compile intervention-relevant theoretical and empirical findings. Finally, we outline concrete future directions that emerge from this survey.

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Atsushi Miyauchi, Yuko Kuroki, Federico Cinus, Stefan Neumann, Francesco Bonchi. 2026-03-11. A Survey on Algorithmic Interventions in Opinion Dynamics. https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.10756

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