Behavioral Sciences

31 pages, 1710 KB

Open AccessArticle

How Employee–AI Collaboration Influences Coworkers’ Helping Behaviour: An Attribution Theory Perspective

by Yepeng Wu and Yuanyuan Jiao

Behav. Sci. 2026, 16(6), 985; https://doi.org/10.3390/bs16060985 (registering DOI) - 12 Jun 2026

As artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly integrated into the workplace, employee–AI collaboration is evolving from a personal productivity tool to a social cue that coworkers can observe and interpret. Existing research has largely emphasised the performance and well-being effects of employee–AI collaboration; however, [...] Read more.

As artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly integrated into the workplace, employee–AI collaboration is evolving from a personal productivity tool to a social cue that coworkers can observe and interpret. Existing research has largely emphasised the performance and well-being effects of employee–AI collaboration; however, few studies have revealed, from the observer’s perspective, its potential negative spillover mechanisms on coworkers’ helping behaviour. Based on attribution theory, this study constructs a theoretical model of ‘employee–AI collaboration–coworker attributions–coworker helping behaviour’, distinguishing two mechanisms—laziness attribution and responsibility-avoidance attribution—and examines the boundary role of human–AI task interdependence. Study 1, based on 375 two-wave coworker survey responses, tested the hypotheses using hierarchical regression and bootstrapping methods. Study 2 employed a 2 × 2 scenario experiment to further test the effects of employee–AI collaboration and human–AI task interdependence on coworker attributions and willingness to help. The results indicate that higher perceived employee–AI collaboration is associated with lower coworker helping behaviour; laziness attribution and responsibility-avoidance attribution play a mediating role between perceived employee–AI collaboration and coworker helping behaviour. The higher the human–AI task interdependence, the more likely coworkers are to interpret employee–AI collaboration as laziness or responsibility-avoidance, thereby reinforcing the aforementioned negative effects. Full article

(This article belongs to the Section Organizational Behaviors)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

26 pages, 1386 KB

Open AccessArticle

Bridging the Gap: A Case Study of Tailored Support for Students with Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Needs During the Transition to High School

by María Reina Santiago-Rosario, Sarah Fairbanks Falcon, Sean C. Austin, Joseph F. T. Nese, Maeghan M. Sullivan, Tony Daza, T. Elyse Calhoun, Haley Cerdan and Rhonda N. T. Nese

Behav. Sci. 2026, 16(6), 984; https://doi.org/10.3390/bs16060984 (registering DOI) - 12 Jun 2026

Journal Description

Behavioral Sciences

Latest Articles

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

Highly Accessed Articles

Latest Books

E-Mail Alert

News

Topics

Conferences

Special Issues

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI