Designing Fair AI for Managing Employees in Organizations: A Review, Critique, and Design Agenda

Human-Computer Interaction, 2020

66 Pages Posted: 18 Mar 2020

See all articles by Lionel Robert

Lionel Robert

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor - School of Information

Casey Pierce

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor

Liz Morris

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor - School of Information

Sangmi Kim

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor - School of Information

Rasha Alahmad

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor - School of Information

Date Written: February 20, 2020

Abstract

Organizations are rapidly deploying artificial intelligence (AI) systems to manage their workers. However, AI has been found at times to be unfair to workers. Unfairness toward workers has been associated with decreased worker effort and increased worker turnover. To avoid such problems, AI systems must be designed to support fairness and redress instances of unfairness. Despite the attention related to AI unfairness, there has not been a theoretical and systematic approach to developing a design agenda. This paper addresses the issue in three ways. First, we introduce the organizational justice theory, three different fairness types (distributive, procedural, interactional), and the frameworks for redressing instances of unfairness (retributive justice, restorative justice). Second, we review the design literature that specifically focuses on issues of AI fairness in organizations. Third, we propose a design agenda for AI fairness in organizations that applies each of the fairness types to organizational scenarios. Then, the paper concludes with implications for future research.

Keywords: artificial intelligence, artificial Intelligence unfairness, organizational justice theory, artificial Intelligence bias, algorithmic fairness

JEL Classification: J1, J15, J16, J31, J81

Suggested Citation

Robert, Lionel and Pierce, Casey and Morris, Liz and Kim, Sangmi and Alahmad, Rasha, Designing Fair AI for Managing Employees in Organizations: A Review, Critique, and Design Agenda (February 20, 2020). Human-Computer Interaction, 2020, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3541997

Lionel Robert (Contact Author)

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor - School of Information ( email )

4388 North Quad
105 South State Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1092
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HOME PAGE: http://www.si.umich.edu/people/lionel-robert

Casey Pierce

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor ( email )

500 S. State Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
United States

Liz Morris

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor - School of Information ( email )

304 West Hall
550 East University
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1092
United States

Sangmi Kim

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor - School of Information ( email )

304 West Hall
550 East University
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1092
United States

Rasha Alahmad

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor - School of Information ( email )

304 West Hall
550 East University
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1092
United States

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