MIT Sloan Management Review Article on The Hazards of Putting Ethics on Autopilot

Research shows that employees who are steered by digital nudges may lose some ethical competency. That has implications for how we use the new generation of AI assistants.

The generative AI boom is unleashing its minions. Enterprise software vendors have rolled out legions of automated assistants that use large language model (LLM) technology, such as ChatGPT, to offer users helpful suggestions or to execute simple tasks. These so-called copilots and chatbots can increase productivity and automate tedious manual work. But if they are not thoughtfully implemented, they risk diminishing employees’ decision-making competency, especially when ethics are at stake.

Our examination of the consequences of “nudging” techniques, used by companies to influence employees or customers to take certain actions, has implications for organizations adopting the new generation of chatbots and automated assistants. Companies implementing generative AI agents are encouraged to tailor them to increase managerial control. Microsoft, which has made copilots available across its suite of productivity software, offers a tool that enterprises can customize, thus allowing them to more precisely steer employee behavior. Such tools will make it much easier for companies to essentially put nudging on steroids — and based on our research into the effects of nudging, that may over time diminish individuals’ own willingness and capacity to reflect on the ethical dimension of their decisions.

About the Author

Julian Friedland is an associate professor of business ethics at the College of Business, Metropolitan State University of Denver. David B. Balkin is professor emeritus of management at the Leeds School of Business in the University of Colorado Boulder. Kristian Ove R. Myrseth is a professor of management at the School for Business and Society at the University of York in England.

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