{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,11]],"date-time":"2026-06-11T06:01:16Z","timestamp":1781157676212,"version":"3.54.1"},"reference-count":38,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,11]],"date-time":"2026-06-11T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1781136000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Public Health"],"abstract":"<jats:p>In platform labor, algorithms reshape workers\u2019 perception and control of time through mechanisms such as dynamic pricing, compulsory task assignment, time-limit compression, and real-time surveillance, giving rise to a novel power formation\u2014 \u201calgorithmic time politics.\u201d Taking this concept as its analytical core, this article integrates Foucault\u2019s disciplinary theory, Rosa\u2019s theory of social acceleration, and Karasek\u2019s job demand-control model, supplemented by Bakker and Demerouti\u2019s job demands-resources model, to construct a multilevel theoretical framework linking algorithmic time control to the multiple health outcomes of platform workers. The core argument of the framework is that algorithmic time politics damages occupational health through three interconnected mechanisms\u2014temporal predation, temporal acceleration and discipline, and temporal loss of control\u2014which form a progressive chain from \u201cthe quantity of time\u201d through \u201cthe quality of time\u201d to \u201cthe sovereignty over time.\u201d Drawing on the relevant literature, the framework posits that temporal predation primarily damages physiological health\u2014manifesting as cardiovascular strain and musculoskeletal injuries\u2014through the mediating pathway of chronic fatigue. Temporal acceleration and discipline are theorized to undermine mental health, giving rise to anxiety and burnout via time panic and emotional exhaustion. Temporal loss of control, in turn, is expected to contribute to depression and to heighten occupational injury risk, with learned helplessness and the depletion of cognitive resources as key mediating processes. Interactive effects and dynamic vicious cycles exist among the three mechanisms: temporal loss of control amplifies the physiological effects of temporal predation, while temporal acceleration intensifies the psychological effects of temporal loss of control. The article further discusses moderating variables, including social security, algorithmic transparency, and alternative employment opportunities. It concludes with policy proposals to incorporate \u201calgorithmic time politics\u201d into occupational health risk assessments and to promote \u201chealth-friendly algorithmic design,\u201d and outlines directions for operationalizing the framework in future empirical research.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fpubh.2026.1876749","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,11]],"date-time":"2026-06-11T05:47:26Z","timestamp":1781156846000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Predation, acceleration, and loss of control: a multilevel theoretical framework for algorithmic time politics and the occupational health of platform workers"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"14","author":[{"given":"Qiuyu","family":"Fan","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Philosophy, Shanghai Normal University","place":["Shanghai, China"]},{"name":"Institute of Marxism, Anhui Academy of Social Sciences","place":["Hefei, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,11]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","volume-title":"World Employment and Social Outlook 2021: The Role of Digital Labour Platforms in Transforming the World of Work","year":"2021"},{"key":"ref2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"366","DOI":"10.5465\/annals.2018.0174","article-title":"Algorithms at work: the new contested terrain of control","volume":"14","author":"Kellogg","year":"2020","journal-title":"Annals"},{"key":"ref3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1307","DOI":"10.1177\/09500170231185212","article-title":"Ride-hail drivers, taxi drivers and multiple jobholders: who takes the Most risks and why?","volume":"38","author":"Lefcoe","year":"2024","journal-title":"Work Employ Soc"},{"key":"ref4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"114244","DOI":"10.1016\/j.isci.2025.114244","article-title":"Algorithmic platform management and risk-taking behavior among Chinese food delivery riders","volume":"28","author":"Liu","year":"2025","journal-title":"iScience"},{"key":"ref5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1239","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph20021239","article-title":"Workers\u2019 health under algorithmic management: emerging findings and urgent research questions","volume":"20","author":"Vignola","year":"2023","journal-title":"Int J Environ Res Public Health"},{"key":"ref6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"3","DOI":"10.1111\/1467-8675.00309","article-title":"Social acceleration: ethical and political consequences of a desynchronized high\u2013speed society","volume":"10","author":"Rosa","year":"2003","journal-title":"Constellations"},{"key":"ref7","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"2053951718820549","DOI":"10.1177\/2053951718820549","article-title":"When data is capital: Datafication, accumulation, and extraction","volume":"6","author":"Sadowski","year":"2019","journal-title":"Big Data Soc"},{"key":"ref8","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"2635","DOI":"10.1186\/s12889-025-23916-5","article-title":"What is known about the health of location-based and online web-based digital labour platform workers? 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