TY - JOUR
T1 - Deployment of Algorithms in Management Tasks Reduces Prosocial Motivation
AU - Granulo, Armin
AU - Caprioli, Sara
AU - Fuchs, Christoph
AU - Puntoni, Stefano
PY - 2024/3
Y1 - 2024/3
N2 - Thanks to advances in artificial intelligence,
firms increasingly deploy algorithms in a wide range of management
tasks (e.g., evaluating workers' performance). Scholars and major political institutions
have therefore called for a better understanding of the behavioral and
psychological consequences of this phenomenon. In this research, we
investigate how deploying algorithms in management tasks affects
prosocial motivation, a crucial dimension of workplace productivity and
social interactions. Across five pre-registered studies (N = 3,153, Mage = 33.96, SDage = 11.89;
51% female), including field and experimental data, we find that
deploying algorithms (vs. humans) in management tasks reduces employees’
prosocial motivation (e.g., the desire to help others). We demonstrate
that this negative effect (i) occurs because management by algorithms
leads to greater objectification of others, (ii) also occurs when
algorithms perform tasks together with human managers, and (iii) depends
on the type of management task algorithms perform. These findings add
another layer to the political, academic, and organizational debate on
algorithmic management.
AB - Thanks to advances in artificial intelligence,
firms increasingly deploy algorithms in a wide range of management
tasks (e.g., evaluating workers' performance). Scholars and major political institutions
have therefore called for a better understanding of the behavioral and
psychological consequences of this phenomenon. In this research, we
investigate how deploying algorithms in management tasks affects
prosocial motivation, a crucial dimension of workplace productivity and
social interactions. Across five pre-registered studies (N = 3,153, Mage = 33.96, SDage = 11.89;
51% female), including field and experimental data, we find that
deploying algorithms (vs. humans) in management tasks reduces employees’
prosocial motivation (e.g., the desire to help others). We demonstrate
that this negative effect (i) occurs because management by algorithms
leads to greater objectification of others, (ii) also occurs when
algorithms perform tasks together with human managers, and (iii) depends
on the type of management task algorithms perform. These findings add
another layer to the political, academic, and organizational debate on
algorithmic management.
KW - MIB
KW - Cat. 2
KW - Algorithmic management
KW - Artificial intelligence
KW - Management by algorithms
KW - Objectification
KW - Prosocial motivation
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85180375863&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.chb.2023.108094
DO - 10.1016/j.chb.2023.108094
M3 - Article
SN - 0747-5632
VL - 152
JO - Computers in Human Behavior
JF - Computers in Human Behavior
IS - 108094
M1 - 108094
ER -