ABSTRACT The rapid advancement of robots is reshaping societal structures and posing psychological threats to humans. The present research examines how individuals cope with growing threats from robots by affirming hierarchical structures. Across three studies (total N = 1128), we found that perceived robot threat increased a preference for hierarchy by eroding perceived control. Specifically, Study 1 demonstrated that exposure to news portraying high robot threats decreased personal control, thereby increasing hierarchical preferences. Study 2 provided causal evidence for this underlying mechanism by experimentally manipulating both robot threat and perceived control. Further, Study 3 identified that the perceived orderliness of the social system buffered this effect. Theoretically, the present research explores the psychological consequences of robot threat and extends compensatory control theory. Practically, our findings highlight the potential role of robots in exacerbating social inequality and underscore the effective buffering function of emphasizing social system orderliness.
Xu et al. (Thu,) studied this question.