The rapid development of artificial intelligence technology is bringing unprecedented psychological impact to human society. When machines are able to complete more and more tasks faster and more accurately than humans, a profound existential question begins to trouble many people: If AI is so good, then what is the meaning of my existence? This psychological phenomenon, known as the AI ​​existential value crisis, is quietly spreading around the world, attracting widespread attention from the psychology and sociology communities.

Silent psychological epidemic

Irish psychologist and writer Elaine Ryan revealed a worrying trend in an interview with Business Insider. She found that more and more clients and readers began to regard the emergence of artificial intelligence as a new source of anxiety in their lives. I hear questions like this over and over again: 'Where do I fit in now? ' or 'What can I offer that artificial intelligence can't? ' Ryan said.

This anxiety is not a simple career worry, but touches the core level of human psychology. Ryan explains: It taps into what we call core beliefs in psychology – those quiet, deep-seated fears like ‘I’m not good enough’ or ‘I don’t belong’. AI has a way of activating these beliefs in very direct and disorienting ways.

This phenomenon is seen across professional fields. Designers worry about AI’s ability to generate more creative work, doctors find AI diagnostic systems more accurate than they are, lawyers see AI processing legal documents faster, and even psychologists are beginning to question their own value as AI chatbots are providing psychological support to more and more people. Studies have shown that the application of AI technology has made some employees’ skills and experience no longer valuable enough, and they are at risk of being replaced, cut or forced to transform, resulting in a sense of relative deprivation.

Experts’ personal experience

Even more thought-provoking is that even experts who study this phenomenon are not completely immune. Ryan confesses that she herself is using AI to perform administrative work and even provides personal medical results to AI to interpret the data. I uploaded my lab results and the AI ​​explained them more clearly than my own doctor, she said. It’s impressive and, to be honest, a little disturbing.

This personal experience gave Ryan a deeper understanding of the dilemma people face. When AI demonstrates superior capabilities in areas that are traditionally considered to be exclusive to humans, it is not just replacing specific work tasks, but also challenging humans' perception of their own unique value. This challenge involves the most basic psychological needs of humans - a sense of value, belonging, and self-efficacy.

From a psychological perspective, this phenomenon can be understood as a new type of technological existential anxiety. Traditional existential anxiety is usually related to death, meaning, and free choice, while technological existential anxiety stems from questioning one's own value and status in front of intelligent machines. This anxiety not only affects personal mental health, but may also have a profound impact on the psychological state of society as a whole.

Coping strategies and suggestions

In the face of this challenge, Ryan proposed some practical coping strategies. First, she suggested that people understand this fear of AI as a symptom of anxiety, and anxiety is something we know how to deal with. She emphasized that the key is not to avoid AI, but to seek to understand it and reduce anxiety through familiarity.

If you are not receiving treatment, the best thing you can do is to pay attention to avoidance behavior... Instead, try to move slowly towards it, she suggested. AI may be new, but the human response to uncertainty is not. The goal is not to compete with machines. It is to reclaim the human part—experience, depth, emotional intelligence—which is still more important than we thought.

However, this individual-level coping strategy has obvious limitations. It does not help to prevent the rapid development and widespread application of AI technology, nor can it solve the broader social problems that AI may bring, such as fundamental changes in the employment structure, the increase in social inequality, and the further alienation of interpersonal relationships.

Deeper social impact

In fact, the impact of AI on human mental health goes far beyond the crisis of existential values. Studies have found that people are increasingly turning to AI rather than real humans as a source of emotional support, which has exacerbated social isolation. At the same time, AI systems sometimes lead users into delusional beliefs or are used by malicious users to harm vulnerable groups such as children.

From a more macro perspective, the rapid development of AI is redefining the nature and meaning of work. Professor John Danaher of University College Dublin pointed out that even if AI does not completely replace human workers, it will weaken the intrinsic value of work. This phenomenon is called the de-meaning of work and may have a profound impact on the mental health of society as a whole.

The latest research shows that AI anxiety has a positive impact on the innovative behavior of the new generation of employees through job reshaping, and the degree of employee-organization attachment plays an important moderating role. This reminds us that although AI brings challenges, it may also stimulate human innovation potential and adaptability.