Automation guilt is emerging as a defining emotion of the AI era, highlighting the moral unease people feel when they rely on AI for tasks they believe they should handle themselves. This phenomenon, documented in studies such as Cecilia Ka Yuk Chan’s “Understanding AI Guilt” (2025), reveals that individuals grapple with feelings of laziness, fear of judgment, and doubts about their authenticity and self-worth. A subsequent study by D. Vassallo (2026) illustrates how AI use creates ethical dilemmas and identity tension, leading many to underreport their reliance on AI due to perceived stigma, especially among Gen Z users. The rise of AI disrupts traditional notions of work, linking productivity to effort and individual output, resulting in cognitive dissonance and increased anxiety, as noted in studies on AI-driven technostress. Despite its growing integration in workflows, the lingering question remains: how much of one’s output is genuinely theirs when AI is involved?
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