Researchers have proposed a medical term for employees worried that AI will take their jobs
Employees in an office, PHOTO: Shutterstock
Although the body of evidence to suggest that the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) has led to significant job losses to date is thin, the topic has generated much discussion and debate. A group of researchers is now proposing that these concerns be designated by a medical term, Futurism.com and Gizmodo report.
Research published in the journal Cureus notes that employees are increasingly suffering from stress caused by the constant fear of being replaced, and that the situation has become so serious that it needs its own term.
Researchers are proposing to call this new modern form of anxiety “AI replacement dysfunction” (AIRD).
The authors define the term as meant to “describe the psychological and existential distress that can be felt by people faced with the threat or reality of job loss due to artificial intelligence (AI)”.
They list several common symptoms that can be associated with the disorder, including anxiety, insomnia, depression and identity confusion, and say these “may reflect deeper fears about relevance, meaning and future employability”. AIRD can also lead to additional challenges, such as mental disorders or substance abuse, according to the researchers.
More and more employees are worried about being replaced by AI
Their work comes as a growing number of voices in the tech industry, as well as other economic sectors, have warned since last year that the implementation of AI in companies could lead to significant job losses, especially in office work.
A recent Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 71 percent of respondents said they were concerned that AI would leave “too many people permanently out of work.”
A study by Pew Research found that more than half of Americans are concerned about the impact of AI on their own jobs, and that a majority of low- and middle-income earners believe AI will worsen their job prospects in the future.
Another study published in the medical journal JAMA found that people who work in occupations particularly vulnerable to automation are more likely to report higher levels of stress and other negative emotions.
Companies have invoked AI in mass layoff decisions
Tech site Gizmodo notes that while very few layoffs have been directly attributed to AI (despite the fact that many companies have used AI as a pretext for wider layoffs), there still appears to be negative effects on the workforce, especially for entry-level positions.
Early-career workers are clearly having much more difficulty finding a job, which can be attributed at least in part to the fact that firms are more willing to replace this type of work with AI.
Although AIRD is not yet an accepted clinical diagnosis, researchers have created a framework to identify it, including a screening questionnaire designed to help clinicians spot potential symptoms.
They state that the treatment for the condition they propose for recognition by the medical community should be determined by each individual clinician. But the paper's authors highlight cognitive behavioral therapy and other cognitive restructuring techniques to “help patients develop psychological resilience and restore a coherent sense of their own identity.”
