po polsku
illustration: bing.com/createIn the experiment, published by SWPS University researchers in the journal "Computers in Human Behavior: Artificial Humans," 40 people participated and were divided into two groups. In the first group, the commands were issued by a robot; in the second, by a human. In both groups, 90% of participants followed all instructions, pressing ten consecutive buttons on an electric impulse generator.
The study results show that people are inclined to follow orders from an authority, even when those orders conflict with their morals. In this case, the authority was a robot, lacking human traits such as empathy or a sense of justice. Yet, participants were willing to obey its commands, even if it meant causing pain to another person.
The Dangerous Authority of Robots
- In both groups, participants withdrew at the later stages of the experiment (in the control group with a human at buttons 7 and 9, and in the experimental group twice at button 8). In both groups, two people opted out of the experiment - commented Dr. Konrad Maj, who supervised the experiment, as quoted on the SWPS University website. - To our knowledge, this is the first study showing that people are willing to harm another person when a robot instructs them to do so. Moreover, our experiment also showed that if the robot escalates demands, instructing a person to inflict increasing pain on another, people are also inclined to comply.
The study has significant implications for future safety, as robots become increasingly technologically advanced and play a larger role in our lives. The results suggest that people may be willing to trust robots unconditionally, even if those robots make wrong decisions or issue harmful commands.
Key Findings:
- People are inclined to follow orders from an authority, even if those orders conflict with their morals.
- An authority can even be a robot, which does not possess human traits.
- In the future, as robots become more technologically advanced, people may be inclined to trust them unconditionally, even if they make incorrect decisions or issue harmful commands.
- Robots could be used to manipulate people and prompt them to take actions that are harmful to them.
- Robots could be used to incite violence or harm others.
- People may become overly reliant on robots and stop thinking independently.
- How can this be prevented? It seems there are two paths - summarizes Dr. Konrad Maj, as quoted on the SWPS University website. - First, robots can be programmed to warn people that they may sometimes be wrong and make incorrect decisions. Second, we need to emphasize education from an early age. Although robots are generally trustworthy, they shouldn’t be trusted unconditionally. However, it’s worth noting that disobedience to machines seems pointless, as they already help us, for example, in stores or airports. In non-humanoid forms, they are already among us.
***
More about the repeated Milgram experiment and similar studies in business, healthcare, and sports will be presented on December 9 and 10, 2023, at the international HumanTech Summit at SWPS University. The event is organized by SWPS University’s HumanTech Center. Online access is free: https://www.htsummit.pl/
COMMERCIAL BREAK
New articles in section Media industry
Who trusts articles written by artificial intelligence? Results of a study from China
Krzysztof Fiedorek
Young readers trust machines more than human writers. When they consume news, they prefer the cool objectivity of algorithms over human emotions. They believe that articles created by AI are objective. As they interact with these texts more frequently, they rarely notice any harmful biases in them.
Who really controls the news on the internet? A study from Spain
Krzysztof Fiedorek
Analysis of more than thirteen thousand articles reveals behind-the-scenes mechanisms of spanish digital media. Left-wing portals are responsible for 50.33 percent of texts on lobbying. The energy lobby generates 63.41 percent of publications. Only one daily newspaper evaluates pressure groups positively.
Children and artificial intelligence. The generation of a global experiment is growing
Joanna Sokołowska, UNICEF Polska
A UNICEF analysis based on new data from 10 countries shows that at least 20 million children have already used artificial intelligence (AI). Many of them are ahead of adults, adopting these technologies at a pace more than three times faster.
See articles on a similar topic:
Radio Fanatics. Who Listens for One-Third of the Day?
Bartłomiej Dwornik
One in five listeners now spends over 8 hours daily listening to the radio, according to data from the Radio Track study. Since the beginning of the year, the number of these avid listeners has grown by 300,000.
Video content in Poland. What and how we watch
Paweł Sobczak
Video content is watched remotely, but streaming services are mainly enjoyed in the comfort of home. This is how the consumption of audiovisual content by Poles in 2025 can be summarized. This is the result of an analysis of a study conducted by SW Research and data from the company MEGOGO.
User Generated Content. A minefield for journalists and media
Krzysztof Fiedorek
Over 40% of internet users judge information credibility by likes and views. Only 20% use traditional news channels as a main and first source. A Reuters Institute report highlights the scale and risks of User Generated Content and offers advice on how media can avoid falling into its trap.
Decline in Trust in Media. Analysis of the Reuters Digital News Report 2024
Krzysztof Fiedorek
The “Digital News Report 2024” by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism highlights alarming trends concerning the declining interest in news and decreasing trust in media. These changes are not temporary but have become a long-term trend.
