The article examines the psychological costs that software professionals face when organizations adopt artificial intelligence (AI) in software engineering workflows. Through a case study involving 21 interviews at a large software development services company, the authors identify several negative impacts—accountability anxiety, craft identity disruption, erosion of meaning and satisfaction, increased cognitive load and workload, and uncertainty distress. They also describe how practitioners cope by restoring control, adopting protective adaptations, or absorbing the costs, arguing that AI adoption should be viewed as a human transition rather than merely a technological or organizational change.
arXiv:2601. 16700v2 Announce Type: replace-cross Abstract: Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) tools have seen rapid adoption among software developers.
The study evaluates Vibe Coding, an AI‑led conversational programming paradigm that lets developers generate software via natural‑language interaction with large language models. In a mixed‑methods experiment with 30 participants, Vibe Coding improved development efficiency—reducing task completion time by 27% versus traditional coding and 12% versus AI‑assisted coding—while also yielding a good usability score (SUS = 71.4) and moderate cognitive workload (NASA‑TLX = 55.5). However, the gains came with trade‑offs: lower maintainability indices, higher security vulnerabilities, and themes of trust calibration, loss of control, and prompt‑engineering strategy emerged, leading the authors to propose a three‑pillar framework for responsible adoption.
arXiv:2607. 28650v1 Announce Type: cross Abstract: While industry discourse often emphasizes immediate productivity gains and frames GenAI primarily as a tool for automation, the integration of GenAI into system administration may involve deeper shifts in professional practice that are not yet fully understood.
arXiv:2607. 05125v1 Announce Type: cross Abstract: This paper presents an exploratory evaluation of how increasing levels of AI autonomy affect software development productivity, requirement adherence, and developer cognitive workload.
This paper presents an exploratory evaluation of how increasing levels of AI autonomy affect software development productivity, requirement adherence, and developer cognitive workload. A team of four developers reimplemented the same full-stack web application across three sequential phases: partial AI-assisted development using GitHub Copilot, an AI-exclusive workflow using GitHub Copilot, and an AI-exclusive workflow using AWS Kiro.
The paper examines how a large embedded systems company is transitioning to an AI‑first organization, focusing on the role of autonomous AI agents in software engineering. Through a mixed‑method study involving 40 workshop participants—scrum masters, architects, managers, and product owners—the authors identify expected impacts on team structure, required competencies, organizational strategies, and developer roles. The study concludes with a concrete roadmap and discusses implications for federated AI team formation, human‑in‑the‑loop practices, and sustainable AI adoption in embedded software engineering.
arXiv:2606. 17887v1 Announce Type: cross Abstract: Generative AI (GenAI) deployment in the workplace is accelerating rapidly.
arXiv:2412. 19754v4 Announce Type: replace-cross Abstract: Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming the nature of work, yet there is limited empirical evidence on how it affects demand for human skills.
arXiv:2606. 05770v1 Announce Type: cross Abstract: AI is changing how software engineers work, but it often comes with hidden burdens and costs.
arXiv:2608.25241v2 Announce Type: replace-cross Abstract: Coding agents increase development velocity but also technical debt. Prior work reports only average effects across adopters, hiding wide dif...
arXiv:2608. 14609v1 Announce Type: cross Abstract: As artificial intelligence (AI) rapidly diffuses and concerns about job displacement intensify, the psychological mechanisms underlying AI job replacement anxiety remain insufficiently understood.
arXiv:2606. 12424v1 Announce Type: cross Abstract: As generative AI and low-code workflow platforms become routine in software practice, a key educational question is whether the next generation of computer engineers will accept these tools as useful, usable, and worthy of sustained engagement.