Post #1412367

”Here, through a series of randomized controlled trials on human-AI interactions (N= 1, 222), we provide causal evidence for two key consequences of AI assistance: reduced persistence and impairment of unassisted performance.” ”Our results are notable on two fronts. First, while concern about AI-induced deskilling has grown, prior evidence has been largely correlational (Budzy´ n et al., 2025; Gerlich, 2025) or limited to small samples (Kosmyna et al., 2025; Shen & Tamkin, 2026). Here, through a series of randomized controlled trials on human-AI interactions, we provide the first large-scale causal evidence of this effect. Second, we demonstrate how AI can result in loss of motivation and persistence. A rich body of literature in cognitive science and education has shown that the capacity to regulate effort and persist through difficulty is foundational to effective learning, and is among the strongest predictors of long-term academic achievement, workforce adaptability, and resilience (Metcalfe & Mischel, 1999; Duckworth et al., 2007; Maddux, 2009; Metcalfe, 2009; Andersson & Bergman, 2011; Bjork et al., 2011; Kapur, 2014; Guiso et al., 2016; Mooradian et al., 2016). Our results suggest that AI assistance erodes precisely these capacities. People do not merely become worse at tasks, but they also stop trying.” https://arxiv.org/pdf/2604.04721