As the headlines about AI, continue to proliferate, a cursory look at the front page of headlines can make it seem no one has anything good to say about AI, even if it IS nice to see everyone getting along so well.

Politics aside, warnings include everything from why dangerous AI means you should hold off on having children to opinion pieces on the NY Times predicting doomsday scenarios.
Everyone wants a slice of this weirdly metallic apple pie.
With that in mind, let’s widen our lens and look at two psychological functions that may be affecting society’s response to AI technology: scapegoating and sublimation. Scapegoating refers to the act of unfairly blaming an individual or a group for problems, shortcomings, or negative events, often to deflect responsibility or maintain social cohesion. In contrast, sublimation refers to a subconscious defense mechanism, wherein socially unacceptable impulses or instincts are transformed or redirected into more socially acceptable behaviors or activities. In a very broad sense, though both serve important psychological functions, scapegoating is considered a negative way to cope with collective frustration, anger, and anxiety, while sublimation tends to have more prosocial implications.

Another lens to consider is exteriority vs. interiority. Scapegoating is expressed outwardly towards others to defend against self-reflection and realizations that may be painful or frightening, while sublimation is an internal subconscious process that transmutes instinctual energies into something positive or productive. Sublimation is actually at the core of many types of expressive and artistic works—that high school poetry you wrote after a painful breakup that inspired you to later pursue an MFA degree. Sublimation is also seen at the heart of innovation, both individually and collectively. In 1945, there were staggering challenges for a British society that had been ravaged by WWII and these complex and varied concerns were analyzed and reflected upon by psychoanalysts, medical officers, and philanthropists of the time. Reflections of a wide intersection of concerned parties resulted in change.
British governments, both Labour and Conservative, introduced a series of initiatives and legislative reforms designed to rebuild towns and landscapes ravaged by bombs, to restore psychological and physical well-being, and promote family life (Jackson 2015).
So is AI really a societal scapegoat or an opportunity for collective sublimation?
In short: Yes, and…
Make no mistake, societal fear, insecurity, and deflection is at the core of movements that unfairly blame or hold the technology of AI as somehow responsible for the society’s challenging feelings. The more salient truth is that generative AI technology has exposed aspects of the US zeitgeist that most would rather deny, distance themselves from, or categorize as beliefs of a fringe or radicalized minority. Scapegoating AI allows everyone to attribute societal issues solely to the presence and advancement of AI technology, even though these issues can be traced back to the bedrock of colonization and resulting modern societies.
This is not to say there are not concerns, real risks, and action to be taken when it comes to AI’s impact on say, workforces or privacy. Unfortunately, the presence of these real concerns provides a stealthy cover for society to hand-wave away what it means when generative AI turns out to be racist, sexist, and even homicidal (Dodgson 2018 - https://www.businessinsider.com/scientists-created-psychopath-ai-called-norman-2018-6). Society has been formally introduced to its “id” and, unsurprisingly, everyone’s a little upset at what’s in there.

But what if all this is actually an unprecedented opportunity for self-reflection and the exact kind of sublimation needed at this particular moment in time? Anyone who’s willing to read the news or stay plugged in to what’s happening on Planet Earth knows the problems humankind faces are exponentially complicated and a failure to solve them could lead to an unmitigated extinction-level process (if it's not already too late). The frat-boy organisms who butt-chugged one too many might never get to graduate into the symbiotic sobriety needed to avert the global catastrophe they themselves created.
And what’s the first step toward sobriety? Knowing when to ask for help.
AI technology is an extremely powerful tool that can scale—in time, it may help us solve problems we never could on our own (stay tuned for a future post that spotlights exactly how AI can be used to sober up Human Sigma Chi.)
But first, we do have to address the ethics, fairness, transparency, and accountability concerns, all while resisting the urge to slide into the comforting miasma of scapegoating the technology for airing all our dirty laundry. Rather than scapegoating AI, we can instead be grateful for the spotlight and use it to address the concerns this technology has raised—and no, this process won’t fit in a Buzzfeed article. Instead, we can choose to move away from scapegoating by making the subconscious process conscious. This will have to include engaging in thoughtful interdisciplinary discussions, developing policies that balance innovation with protecting the public, and responsible decision-making by developers, engineers, and governments. Individual and collective sublimation is possible as individuals and groups channel their concerns into constructive actions, such as advocating for regulations they want to see, analyzing societal impacts, conducting research, and by participating in interdisciplinary collaborations.
It's easy to self-congratulate and feel confident in the “best right way” to move forward. However, societal reactions to AI are complex and multifaceted. While some individuals may engage in productive discourse and constructive actions, others may resort to scapegoating, blaming AI for societal issues without considering the broader context or potential benefits. Understanding these dynamics and fostering informed discussions about AI's impact can help us all navigate the integration of AI technology in a responsible and balanced manner.
Sound complicated? It is.
But so is living out your species’ own self-generated extinction.
Citations
Bond, S. (2023, June 8). DeSantis campaign shares apparent AI-generated fake images of Trump and Fauci. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2023/06/08/1181097435/desantis-campaign-shares-apparent-ai-generated-fake-images-of-trump-and-fauci
Dodgson, L. (2018, June 8). Scientists have created a murder-obsessed “psychopath” ai called norman - and it learned everything it knows from reddit. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/scientists-created-psychopath-ai-called-norman-2018-6
Jackson M. STRESS IN POST-WAR BRITAIN: AN INTRODUCTION. In: Jackson M, editor. Stress in Post-War Britain, 1945–85. New York (NY): Routledge; 2015. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK436946/
Palmer, S. (2023, June 8). “hold off from having kids,” warns AI expert Mo Gawdat. Euronews. https://www.euronews.com/next/2023/06/08/hold-off-from-having-kids-if-you-are-yet-to-become-a-parent-warns-ai-expert-mo-gawdat
Pierce, L. (2023, June 9). The future of artificial intelligence and art [image]. Midjourney. https://www.midjourney.com/app/jobs/ecb4b75e-6340-4891-a6a8-9e6d7995565f/
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