AI continues to challenge traditional notions about productivity and personal competence
IN THE ever-evolving landscape of technology, the emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) has heralded a significant paradigm shift in how we live, work and play.
There is no contesting that AI will permeate into more aspects of our lives, bringing along new experiences and opportunities.
Along with the tidal wave of change that AI brings, it continues to challenge traditional notions about productivity and personal competence and affects how we perceive and engage with work.
Unlike previous technological advancements like computers, mobile phones or other hardware and machinery, AI tools not only assist but also execute tasks for humans, fundamentally altering the dynamics of work engagement and mastery experiences.
The benefits gained from having AI take over tasks previously performed by humans are easy to see and understand — more efficient processes, less human errors and more consistent outputs.
What is less obvious is the fundamental change in the nature of work experiences — such as the perceived value of the work done as we allow AI to perform more and more of our work.
Traditionally, mastery experiences involve individuals actively overcoming challenges, refining their skills and eventually achieving desired outcomes. This gives value to their work and enhances their sense of competence.
Therefore, it can be said that as AI assumes greater responsibility for task execution, opportunities for individuals to derive that value and sense of satisfaction diminish, posing a challenge to the traditional link between hard work and success.
The belief that hard work directly leads to success is a fundamental social contract. Individuals invest time, effort and dedication under the assumption that their contributions will lead to tangible rewards and advancements.
If this belief is eroded or weakened due to AI’s growing role in task execution, it could leave individuals disillusioned and disheartened. The far-reaching negative consequences of widespread disillusionment due to a perceived disconnect between hard work and success can manifest in various aspects of society.
For instance, if entrepreneurs no longer believe that working hard leads to success, they may lose their motivation to innovate, take risks and persevere through setbacks. This can lead to a reluctance to start new ventures or pursue ambitious goals, stifling economic growth and innovation.
To test this hypothesis, we examined data collected by the Pew Research Centre from over 4,000 adults in the US. This dataset measured participants’ attitudes toward AI and the importance they placed on working hard by, for example, “Would you say that society generally places TOO MUCH importance on working and having a job, NOT ENOUGH importance on working and having a job, or is it just about right?”
We found that there was a positive correlation between positive attitudes toward AI and perceiving that society generally places too much importance on working and having a job, which suggests an association between favourable AI perceptions and a decreased emphasis on the value of traditional hard work.
We then conducted two experiments with another 389 working adults across from a wide range of industries from the US and the UK to test the causal link between the use of AI and the devaluation of labour and hard work.
In these studies, participants were asked to write a short essay on various topics. They were assigned to do it either with or without the assistance of ChatGPT. After collecting essays from participants, we had them rate the perceived value of hard work in the context of their writing process. Following this, also we hired 572 external raters to evaluate these essays.
The results indicated that participants who utilised AI assistance to write their essays perceived hard work as less valuable compared to participants who wrote their essays without assistance, indicating that using AI had a detrimental effect on the value they placed on hard work.
However, when it came to the matter of quality of work, the external raters reported the essays written with AI assistance to be of higher quality than those written without assistance. This was despite the fact that participants who used ChatGPT took less time on average (7.47 minutes) to write their essays compared to participants who did not use ChatGPT (9.31 minutes).
Finally, we conducted a study to replicate these experiments with 100 Singaporean students aged 12-15. It was interesting to note that this test with the students did not yield the same results as with the adults — students who engaged in an AI-assisted task did not perceive hard work as any less valuable compared to students who completed the task without AI assistance.
These results suggest that adolescents, having grown up in the era of technology and AI, perhaps are not as affected by these technologies in the same manner as adults. However, more research is needed to truly understand the generational differences between our responses to the prevalence of AI in our lives.
In sum, while AI undeniably enhances efficiency and objective quality of work, it concurrently fosters a perception of work as less distinctive and diminishes the subjective value accorded to hard work.
In other words, AI assistance erodes people’s sense of competence fulfilment, making them feel less unique and diminishing the value of their efforts.
How then should organisations look at adopting and integrating AI in the workplace?
Today, organisations are continually exploring avenues to bolster efficiency and streamline operations, and one such avenue is the integration of AI into the workplace. With its capacity to automate routine tasks, process vast datasets and provide data-driven insights,
AI holds the promise of revolutionising work processes, thereby enhancing productivity and bolstering competitiveness.
Whether it’s deploying AI-driven chatbots for customer service or leveraging AI algorithms for data analysis, organisations across industries are witnessing tangible improvements in operational efficiency as AI becomes increasingly integrated into their workflows.
Tasks that once demanded significant time and resources are now accomplished swiftly, thanks to AI-powered automation.
Consider the smartphone. On one hand, smartphones have undoubtedly made us more productive, allowing us to stay connected, access information on-the-go, and complete tasks efficiently.
However, the ubiquity of smartphones has also brought about unintended consequences, such as increased distraction at work, social media addiction, and feelings of loneliness and isolation.
Similarly, while AI holds the promise of boosting productivity in the workplace, there is a significant risk that it may also contribute to unintended drawbacks.
As organisations rush to adopt AI technologies in pursuit of efficiency gains, it is essential to acknowledge the potential unintended consequences that may arise, particularly concerning human motivation and the intrinsic value of place on hard work.
While AI may optimise processes and increase productivity on a surface level, our work suggests that its use could inadvertently lead to a gradual disengagement of employees from their work.
One way to counter this is for organisations to adopt a proactive approach to job redesign, aiming to provide employees with opportunities for mastery and purpose in the AI-enabled workplace.
Job redesign involves reimagining job roles and responsibilities to leverage AI for tasks that complement human skills, such as creativity, critical thinking, and complex problem-solving.
Rather than focusing solely on task automation, organisations can reallocate responsibilities to enable employees to develop a deeper understanding of their work and achieve mastery in multiple areas. This may include skill-based task rotation, challenging assignments, and opportunities for feedback and recognition.
For instance, AI can handle data analysis and provide insights, while employees engage in interpreting results, identifying patterns, and making strategic decisions based on these insights. This allows employees to develop a deeper understanding of the data and hone their analytical and deci- sion-making skills.
By redesigning jobs to emphasise skill development, challenging assignments, and recognition of achievements, organisations can foster a culture of continuous learning and growth.
Employees are empowered to engage in intellectually stimulating work, driving innovation and strategic decision-making. This not only enhances job satisfaction and employee retention but also reinforces the value of human contribution in the AI-enabled workplace.
- Alexander Eng is the assistant professor at Asia School of Business and Sam Yam is the professor at the National University of Singapore.
Originally published by The Malaysian Reserve.