Research Article

The Red Queen in the Dashboard: Co-Evolutionary Dynamics of Algorithmic Control and Worker Resistance

Volume: 11 Number: 1 March 31, 2026
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The Red Queen in the Dashboard: Co-Evolutionary Dynamics of Algorithmic Control and Worker Resistance

Abstract

As gig economy platforms increasingly rely on algorithmic management to optimize labor supply, workers are developing sophisticated counter-strategies to regain autonomy. Conventional microeconomic models often treat these interactions as static principal–agent problems. This paper adopts an Evolutionary Game Theory framework to analyze the relationship between algorithmic control and worker behavior as a “Red Queen” dynamic—a co-evolutionary arms race in which the system does not converge to a stable static equilibrium. We model a population of workers choosing between compliance and algorithmic gaming (e.g., coordinated log-offs) against a platform that adjusts its surveillance strictness. Within a Lotka–Volterra–type replicator structure, the interior equilibrium is characterized as a center, generating path-dependent, non-convergent cyclical trajectories. We show that strict algorithmic control can increase the evolutionary fitness of coordinated resistance, producing persistent, neutrally stable oscillatory dynamics in the form of families of closed orbits around an interior center. These findings suggest that “algorithmic unions” may emerge organically as adaptive responses within ongoing, non-convergent platform–worker interactions.

Keywords

References

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Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Game Theory

Journal Section

Research Article

Publication Date

March 31, 2026

Submission Date

November 23, 2025

Acceptance Date

March 19, 2026

Published in Issue

Year 2026 Volume: 11 Number: 1

APA
Yolusever, A. (2026). The Red Queen in the Dashboard: Co-Evolutionary Dynamics of Algorithmic Control and Worker Resistance. Ekonomi Politika Ve Finans Araştırmaları Dergisi, 11(1), 140-159. https://doi.org/10.30784/epfad.1829094
AMA
1.Yolusever A. The Red Queen in the Dashboard: Co-Evolutionary Dynamics of Algorithmic Control and Worker Resistance. EPF Journal. 2026;11(1):140-159. doi:10.30784/epfad.1829094
Chicago
Yolusever, Aras. 2026. “The Red Queen in the Dashboard: Co-Evolutionary Dynamics of Algorithmic Control and Worker Resistance”. Ekonomi Politika Ve Finans Araştırmaları Dergisi 11 (1): 140-59. https://doi.org/10.30784/epfad.1829094.
EndNote
Yolusever A (March 1, 2026) The Red Queen in the Dashboard: Co-Evolutionary Dynamics of Algorithmic Control and Worker Resistance. Ekonomi Politika ve Finans Araştırmaları Dergisi 11 1 140–159.
IEEE
[1]A. Yolusever, “The Red Queen in the Dashboard: Co-Evolutionary Dynamics of Algorithmic Control and Worker Resistance”, EPF Journal, vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 140–159, Mar. 2026, doi: 10.30784/epfad.1829094.
ISNAD
Yolusever, Aras. “The Red Queen in the Dashboard: Co-Evolutionary Dynamics of Algorithmic Control and Worker Resistance”. Ekonomi Politika ve Finans Araştırmaları Dergisi 11/1 (March 1, 2026): 140-159. https://doi.org/10.30784/epfad.1829094.
JAMA
1.Yolusever A. The Red Queen in the Dashboard: Co-Evolutionary Dynamics of Algorithmic Control and Worker Resistance. EPF Journal. 2026;11:140–159.
MLA
Yolusever, Aras. “The Red Queen in the Dashboard: Co-Evolutionary Dynamics of Algorithmic Control and Worker Resistance”. Ekonomi Politika Ve Finans Araştırmaları Dergisi, vol. 11, no. 1, Mar. 2026, pp. 140-59, doi:10.30784/epfad.1829094.
Vancouver
1.Aras Yolusever. The Red Queen in the Dashboard: Co-Evolutionary Dynamics of Algorithmic Control and Worker Resistance. EPF Journal. 2026 Mar. 1;11(1):140-59. doi:10.30784/epfad.1829094