A phenomenon of AI-conformity: how algorithms change human moral decision-making

Abstract

Social conformity is a well-documented phenomenon in which individuals shift their opinions towards those of a social majority. As artificial intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly integrated into everyday life it may also create a novel source of influence giving rise to algorithmic conformity, mechanisms of which are poorly understood. The present study examined whether AI judgements affect moral decision-making in humans (n=165) adapting the classical Asch paradigm. Participants completed a series of moral dilemmas under three different conditions: in presence of social majority, with an AI model providing brief answers and with an AI model providing both answers and explanations of its choices. In all conditions the presented responses contradicted generally accepted moral norms. The results indicated that an AI model with a reasoning component affected the opinion of participants to a degree comparable to that of a human majority. These findings suggest that even moral judgements, despite their sensitivity and personal significance, may be susceptible to algorithmic conformity. However, the mechanism underlying algorithmic conformity appears to differ from the social one. Overall, the study challenges the assumption that moral decision-making lies in "AI inadmissibility zone" - a sphere that is considered as an area in which only human-made decisions are acceptable and highlights the need for a further investigation of this phenomenon as AI-based recommendations become increasingly embedded into human decision-making.