While artificial intelligence has been transforming how we do business, helping people finish work faster and more efficiently, it may have an unintended impact on workplace dynamics.

A recent study published in the Journal of Applied Psychology explored the potential for AI to create a social disconnect for employees. To test their hypothesis, the authors conducted four studies that involved a total of 794 participants who were recruited from various regions and industries.

The studies found employees who interacted more with AI reported higher needs for affiliation and greater feelings of loneliness.

At least 160 engineers working with AI systems at a Taiwanese biomedical firm participated in one of the experiments for over three weeks.

Co-workers and family members of the participants reported the subjects’ bouts with isolation, loneliness, insomnia, and after-work alcohol consumption.

With the exception of increased post-work alcohol consumption, the results of the other experiments in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the US were consistent.

While not conclusive yet, the researchers believe business managers need to consider the impact of AI on the mental and physical well-being of their employees.

How AI can trigger a social disconnect

According to the study, one way AI can create social disconnect is by reducing the amount of face-to-face interaction among employees.

With AI, employees can opt to brainstorm with an AI-powered chatbot, creating fewer opportunities to develop personal relationships in the office.

Moreover, AI systems are often designed to be objective and unbiased, which can lead to a feeling that they are not able to understand or empathise with human emotions.

Increased exposure to AI at work can make it difficult for employees to feel connected to their digital co-workers.

The findings showed employees who interacted more with AI craved such social connection and tended to feel more lonely. Those with higher attachment anxiety also reported stronger feelings of loneliness when they interacted more with AI.

This suggests employees who are already predisposed to feeling lonely are at an even greater risk of experiencing loneliness given their AI usage.

AI-triggered loneliness: The impact on organisations

Organisations should be aware of the potential of AI to create a social disconnect for employees as this can trigger decreased productivity, increased absenteeism, and higher turnover.

“Humans are social animals, and isolating work with AI systems may have damaging spillover effects into employees’ personal lives,” said lead researcher Professor Pok Man Tang from the University of Georgia.

Business leaders can mitigate these risks by providing opportunities for employees to interact with each other in person and by creating a culture of open communication and support.

Organisations should also be mindful of the potential of AI to lead to feelings of loneliness among employees, especially among those with higher attachment anxiety.

They should provide resources and help employees cope with loneliness through employee assistance programs and other mental health resources.

Finally, organisations should carefully consider the design and implementation of AI systems that encourage people to collaborate more often.

“The mixed consequences of these states paint an important, but sobering, picture of the future of AI augmentation efforts,” the study concluded.

“While this future continues apace, managers must pay heed to outcomes experienced by their human employees,” it added.

New paradigms on human relations in the age of AI

The real threat is not from AI, which is “only a piece of technology,” said Nadeem Agha, co-founder of the IT services firm WAIN Labs, on the issue of AI and loneliness.

“The actual danger is from the way individuals, corporations and nations are driven by self-centered goals. Can we handle such immense power in our chaotic and driven emotional state?

“We need to create new paradigms in how we, humans, relate with each other. We must learn how to collaborate as a human race”. Ultimately, he believes, “our emotional intelligence will decide our future, not the IQ of thinking machines.”