The study of AI as a social construct

Artificial intelligence (AI) in sociological science is a multifaceted object for study. Rapidly developing technology encourages sociologists and specialists in related fields to pay attention to various research issues (social risks and consequences, ethical and legal aspects of using AI, social interaction between humans and machines, etc.). Thus, modern approaches to understanding AI can be divided into three groups: AI as a social construct, AI as a socio-technical phenomenon, AI as a social agent. The article presents the stages of studying artificial intelligence in the social sciences: from an exclusively technical context to a social phenomenon. In addition, a methodological approach to the study of AI in the sociological field (AI as a methodological tool) is highlighted. The article attempts to take a deeper look at artificial intelligence through the prism of the theory of social construction and identify the advantages of the theory for further study of AI.