Evidence of a social evaluation penalty for using AI

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Organizational Behavior

Background:

• The increasing adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) tools in professional settings necessitates understanding their social implications.
• Limited research exists on how individuals using AI are perceived by their peers and superiors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate whether individuals anticipate negative social evaluations for using AI tools.
• To examine if these anticipated negative perceptions are justified through actual evaluations.
• To assess the impact of AI use on perceptions of competence and motivation in the workplace.

Main Methods:

• Four preregistered experiments were conducted with a large sample size (N = 4,439).
• Participants' beliefs about social evaluations and their actual experiences of being evaluated were measured.
• The effect of AI use on job candidate assessments was analyzed.

Main Results:

• Individuals using AI tools anticipate and receive negative evaluations concerning their competence and motivation.
• These negative social perceptions were found to influence the assessment of job candidates.
• A significant social cost associated with AI adoption was identified, despite potential productivity gains.

Conclusions:

• The use of AI in the workplace carries social costs, leading to negative perceptions of competence and motivation.
• Individuals face a dilemma between leveraging AI for productivity and managing potential social repercussions.
• Future research should explore strategies to mitigate these negative social evaluations.