Moral spillover from creators to autonomous technological agents.

Area of Science:

• Social Psychology
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Ethics in Technology

Background:

• Autonomous technological agents (algorithms, robots) are increasingly integrated into society.
• Understanding human attributions to these agents is crucial for managing their societal impact.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the extent to which creators' moral convictions "spill over" to autonomous technological agents.
• To examine the consequences of these attributions on mind perception and organizational support.

Main Methods:

• A series of field and laboratory experiments were conducted.
• Studies involved robots reciting scripture, advertising algorithms, and drones for mapping.
• The role of machine autonomy (fully autonomous vs. human-controlled) was investigated.

Main Results:

• Creator moral conviction led to greater assumed belief spillover to autonomous agents.
• Spillover mediated mind perception and organizational support.
• The effect was observed only for fully autonomous machines.

Conclusions:

• Creators' moral convictions can imbue autonomous machines with perceived "mind."
• This spillover can increase support for automation but may decrease positivity when controversial practices are involved.
• Findings have implications for managing automation acceptance and ethical considerations.