humanmediated

The term humanmediated, often written as human-mediated, describes processes, interactions, or outcomes caused by human action or agency rather than by natural or autonomous mechanisms. It emphasizes the role of human decisions, supervision, intervention, or labor in shaping results, and is often contrasted with non-human or machine-mediated processes. The term appears across disciplines to distinguish effects that rely on people rather than spontaneous natural processes.

Examples include ecology and agriculture, where human-mediated dispersal refers to movement of organisms, seeds, or pests via trade, transport, or habitat modification; information and communication, where human-mediated mediation involves people selecting, interpreting, or relaying information; and medicine and public health, where human-mediated transmission denotes infection routes involving human contact, caregiving, or travel. In social sciences, the concept is used to examine mediation in conflict resolution, education, and data collection, highlighting how human agency can amplify, redirect, or suppress natural processes. Recognizing human mediation helps analysts assess risks, design interventions, and account for potential biases introduced by human actors.