ABSTRACT
The Effects of AI Utilization on Anxiety and Flourishing
As generative AI becomes increasingly embedded in organizational
life, employees are experiencing psychological pressures distinct from
those associated with previous technological tra...
ABSTRACT
The Effects of AI Utilization on Anxiety and Flourishing
As generative AI becomes increasingly embedded in organizational
life, employees are experiencing psychological pressures distinct from
those associated with previous technological transitions. The concern
that AI might eventually replace one's job goes beyond a question of
technical adjustment — it affects employees' anxiety and psychological
well-being in ways that deserve closer empirical attention. This study
was motivated by that concern, examining AI utilization level's role in
employees' psychological experiences via mediation and moderation
models.
Drawing on the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) Theory, two models
were tested with data from 300 Korean employees who had used
generative AI in work-related contexts within the past six months.
Data were collected via online survey and analyzed using SPSS v26.0
and PROCESS macro v4.3.
The results revealed a curvilinear (inverted-U) relationship between
AI utilization level and AI job replacement anxiety: in the early stages
of AI use, replacement anxiety tends to rise as experience
accumulates, but once a certain level of proficiency is reached,
anxiety declines. Within the sub-sample below the inflection point,
the indirect effect of AI utilization on state anxiety through AI job
replacement anxiety was supported, while the direct effect was
negative — indicating an inconsistent mediation pattern in which AI
use simultaneously amplifies and attenuates state anxiety through
opposing pathways. In the full sample, perceived organizational
support (POS) buffered the negative effect of state anxiety on
flourishing, and this moderating effect was statistically supported.
Taken together, the findings suggest that workers in the early stages
of AI adoption carry a disproportionate psychological burden, and the
degree to which organizations communicate genuine support during
this period may make a meaningful difference for employee
flourishing. This study contributes theoretically by applying JD-R
Theory to a generative AI context and demonstrating the nonlinear
role of replacement anxiety, while offering practical implications for
HR practitioners designing interventions at the outset of AI adoption.
Keywords: AI utilization level, AI job replacement anxiety, state
anxiety, flourishing, perceived organizational support, Job
Demands-Resources Theory