{"id":72480,"date":"2024-04-15T00:01:15","date_gmt":"2024-04-15T04:01:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/world.edu\/?p=72480"},"modified":"2024-04-15T00:01:15","modified_gmt":"2024-04-15T04:01:15","slug":"the-hidden-risk-of-letting-ai-decide-losing-the-skills-to-choose-for-ourselves","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/world.edu\/the-hidden-risk-of-letting-ai-decide-losing-the-skills-to-choose-for-ourselves\/","title":{"rendered":"The hidden risk of letting AI decide \u2013 losing the skills to choose for ourselves"},"content":{"rendered":"

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As artificial intelligence creeps further into people\u2019s daily lives, so do worries about it. At the most alarmist are concerns about AI\u00a0going rogue<\/a>\u00a0and terminating its human masters.<\/p>\n

But behind the calls for a\u00a0pause on the development of AI<\/a>\u00a0is a suite of more tangible social ills. Among them are the risks AI poses to people\u2019s\u00a0privacy and dignity<\/a>\u00a0and the inevitable fact that, because the algorithms under AI\u2019s hood are programmed by humans, it is just as\u00a0biased<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0discriminatory<\/a>\u00a0as many of us. Throw in the\u00a0lack of transparency<\/a>\u00a0about how AI is designed, and\u00a0by whom<\/a>, and it\u2019s easy to understand why so much time these days is devoted to\u00a0debating its risks<\/a>\u00a0as much as its potential.<\/p>\n

But\u00a0my own research<\/a>\u00a0as a psychologist who\u00a0studies how people make decisions<\/a>\u00a0leads me to believe that all these risks are overshadowed by an even more corrupting, though largely invisible, threat. That is, AI is mere keystrokes away from making people even less disciplined and skilled when it comes to thoughtful decisions.<\/p>\n

Making thoughtful decisions<\/strong><\/h4>\n

The process of making thoughtful decisions involves three\u00a0common sense steps<\/a>\u00a0that begin with taking time to understand the task or problem you\u2019re confronted with. Ask yourself, what is it that you need to know, and what do you need to do in order to make a decision that you\u2019ll be able to credibly and confidently defend later?<\/p>\n

The answers to these questions hinge on actively seeking out information that both fills gaps in your knowledge and challenges your prior beliefs and assumptions. In fact, it\u2019s this\u00a0counterfactual information<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 alternative possibilities that emerge when people unburden themselves of certain assumptions \u2013 that ultimately equips you to defend your decisions when they are criticized.
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