Cognitive Spillover in Human–AI Teams
Abstract
AI is not only a neutral tool in team settings; it influence the social and cognitive fabric of collaboration. Across two randomized experiments, we demonstrate that AI exposure produces causal spillover into human–human interaction—affecting shared language, collective attention, shared mental models, and social cohesion. These spillover effects occur robustly across settings, modalities, tasks, and AI qualities, suggesting that mere exposure to AI drives the influence. AI functions as an implicit “social forcefield,” influencing not only how people speak, but also how they think, what they attend to, and how they relate to each other. We argue for shifting the design paradigm from optimizing “AI as a tool” to understanding AI as a socially influential actor whose effects extend beyond the human–AI interface.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Ethics and Social Impacts of AI
Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare and Education
Innovation
Sustainability
Human-Machine Systems
Publication details
- Journal / source
- ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction
- Publisher
- Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)
- Volume
- 33
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 1–33
- Publication date
- 1 April 2026
- Language
- EN