Beyond the Human: AI, Hybrid Minds, and the Changing Nature of Communication

3 Credits

As artificial intelligence reshapes how we think, create, and communicate, this course asks a foundational question: What does it mean to be human in an age of intelligent machines? This seminar approaches AI not as a technical tool, but as a philosophical and social artifact—a mirror through which humanity examines its own cognition, ethics, and meaning making. We draw from communication theory, social psychology, and philosophy of technology to explore how intelligent systems challenge assumptions about identity, agency, authorship, and social structure. Alongside foundational frameworks such as Computers Are Social Actors (CASA) and sociological theories of meaning (Symbolic Interactionism, Structuration Theory), the course integrates emerging perspectives including Social Approval Theory of Technology Adoption (SATAT) and Machine–Human Reflexivity (MCP/MHP/MSP). These approaches move beyond HCI’s individual level and situate AI within broader social and institutional contexts. Students will examine AI as both an object and subject of communication, using personal experiences to reflect on the emergence of hybrid minds and moral responsibility in algorithmic environments. Through readings, discussion, and writing, the course encourages ethical inquiry, theoretical depth, and self-reflexive insight.