Public Fairness Perceptions of Algorithmic Governance

Algorithms based on artificial intelligence are increasingly being used by governments to make decisions that impact individual citizens' lives. Thus, we are on the verge of a revolution in the public sector, where computers will take over many of the governance tasks previously assigned to human bureaucrats. With it, the conditions for impartial and transparent treatment of citizens are changing. Increased capacity to process relevant information enhances the potential for making more accurate and efficient judgments. Yet, we also run the risk of creating a black box society where citizens are being kept in the dark about the decision-making processes, potentially undermining the legitimacy of governmental institutions among the citizens they serve. While significant attention in the recent few years has been devoted to theoretical discussions on fairness, accountability, and transparency related to algorithmic decision making, little is still known about citizens’ views on this issue. There is thus an imminent need to study these emerging governance developments from a political science perspective, and that is what this project is doing. In 2022, we invited a representative sample of Norwegian citizens to deliberate and express their views on the use of AI in the public sector. This online deliberative poll gathered more than 200 participants from across Norway, inviting group discussions among participants as well as opportunities to ask experts on the topic. The study examines public attitudes toward the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in government decision-making through a deliberative poll conducted in Norway. It explores three potential AI applications in the public sector: refugee resettlement, welfare-to-work programs, and parole decisions. Participants were provided with information on AI and engaged in discussions with peers and experts. The results showed that participants became more supportive of AI in these use cases after gaining more knowledge. The study highlights the importance of involving citizens in AI policymaking to ensure democratic legitimacy and address concerns about fairness, transparency, and accountability. The article is forthcoming in AI & Society. The project was the first in the world to bring together citizens to discuss the ethical and political aspects of artificial intelligence. We are now participating in a newly established research group at Stanford University's Deliberative Democracy Lab, which consists of researchers from Stanford, Meta, and NORCE. The goal is to develop new research questions and collaborations on the use of and attitudes towards artificial intelligence across nations. The Digital Social Science Core Facility (DIGSSCORE) at the University of Bergen is being used to collect survey data. The P.I. is involved in several initiatives related to the project's topic. Among other things, he chaired the workshop 'Democracy and AI' during the NOPSA Congress in 2024, as well as the ECPR conference panel on the same theme in Dublin 2024. He is also part of the core group for a transnational proposal to create a survey module on artificial intelligence, which will be distributed to 30 countries through the European Social Survey. Additionally, he is a member of the newly established research group Deliberation and Technology Research Group at Stanford University, with exclusive data access to the 2023 Meta Community Forum on Generative AI. Home page: https://www.norceresearch.no/prosjekter/public-fairness-perceptions-of-algorithmic-governance

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This proposal aims to study what fairness perceptions citizens adhere to in relation to governance decisions based on algorithmic information processing, and how its use may affect democratic legitimacy. Such procedures are increasingly being introduced by government institutions to help making decisions that impact individual citizens on topics such as giving defendants parole, approving immigration applications, and determining eligibility for welfare programs. Thus, we are on the verge of a revolution in public sector decision-making processes, where computers will take over many of the governance tasks previously assigned to human bureaucrats. With it, the conditions for impartial and transparent treatment of citizens are changing. Increased capacity to process relevant information enhances the potential for making more accurate and efficient judgments. Yet, we also run the risk of creating a black box society where citizens are being kept in the dark about the decision-making processes that affect their lives, potentially undermining the legitimacy of governmental institutions among the citizens they serve. While significant attention in the recent few years has been devoted to normative discussions on fairness, accountability, and transparency related to algorithmic decision making, little is still known about citizens’ views on this issue. There is thus an imminent need to study these emerging governance developments from a political science perspective. This proposal aims to fill this gap by organizing both in-depth group discussions on this topic among representative samples of the Norwegian population through deliberative polling, as well as conduct survey experiments on larger representative survey samples. The Center for Deliberative Democracy at Stanford University and The Digital Social Science Core Facilities (DIGSSCORE) at the University of Bergen are involved in the project, ensuring high data quality from top social science infrastructures.