Younger generations’ expectations regarding artificial intelligence in the job market: Mapping accounts about the future relationship of automation and work

Abstract

There is a deficiency of in-depth explorations of young people’s visions of automation and work, and how these relate to popular projections found in the future-of-work debate. This article investigates such expectations, drawing on 62 interviews with Hungarian university students undertaking non-technical majors. Key characteristics of the interviewees’ accounts included their malleable and changing nature. Although respondents were aware of the widespread messages of experts about the revolutionary nature of likely changes, they expressed scepticism about the extent of change both regarding the macro level and in relation to their own lives. Interestingly, developments in artificial intelligence were not a factor in these young adults’ visions of their careers. The mechanisms and lines of reasoning underlying their expectations – such as a version of optimism bias – are discussed. The study highlights the importance of doing qualitative research on a topic which is dominated by quantitative research.