A new national survey from Chapman University in Orange places worries about artificial intelligence alongside fears of war, corruption and illness.
In results released Oct. 20, 51.9% of respondents reported being afraid or very afraid of AI harming the political process, ranking third. Fear of AI hurting the economy ranked seventh, at 49.7%.
Government corruption led at 61.1%, followed by U.S. involvement in another world war at 58%. Fear of a loved one becoming seriously ill stood at 51.8%.
The AI questions were new this year. Their rankings therefore do not establish a year-over-year increase in those fears. Nor are the results a measure of Orange residents’ views: this was a national survey.
According to Chapman, NORC at the University of Chicago surveyed 1,221 adults online April 7–21, using its probability-based AmeriSpeak panel. The reported margin of error was plus or minus 3.79 percentage points.
The project also gives Chapman students material for their own research. In a separate account published Oct. 20, the university described undergraduates examining government distrust, wildfire misinformation and disaster preparedness with faculty.
Student Suzanne Cibrowski is using the data to study wildfire misinformation, preparedness and people’s information sources. Charlotte Iribarren is examining distrust of government, according to the university.