How Human‐Centered AI Buffers the Negative Effects of AI ‐Induced Job Insecurity on Sustainable Innovation

ABSTRACT The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) generates employee concerns regarding job displacement, termed AI‐induced job insecurity (AIJI). This study examines how AIJI influences sustainable innovation through the serial mediation of psychological safety and knowledge‐sharing behavior, and whether Human‐Centered AI (HCAI) buffers these effects. Analyzing multi‐wave data from 407 employee‐HR dyads across Korean industries, we found that AIJI does not directly suppress sustainable innovation. Instead, it operates through a sociopsychological pathway: structural threats erode psychological safety, which inhibits knowledge sharing, ultimately hampering sustainable innovation. Crucially, HCAI acts as a buffer; when AI transparency and user agency are high, the negative impact of insecurity on psychological safety is neutralized. These findings advance conservation of resources and threat‐rigidity theories, suggesting that realizing AI's potential requires prioritizing human‐centric design to preserve the social fabric essential for collective creativity.