Eroding Social Skills: Expert Warns AI Overreliance Could Weaken Workplace Social Intelligence

Eroding Social Skills are becoming a growing concern as artificial intelligence becomes increasingly embedded in everyday workplace activities. While AI tools can help employees generate content, analyze information and complete routine tasks faster, protocol expert Pamela Eyring has warned that excessive reliance on the technology could come at the expense of communication, relationship-building and other human abilities.

Speaking to FOX Business, Eyring, president of the Protocol School of Washington, said businesses need employees who can use AI effectively while continuing to develop what she describes as essential “power skills.” These include communication, listening, handling disagreements and building relationships with other people.

AI Convenience Could Change Workplace Interaction

One of the concerns surrounding Eroding Social Skills is the convenience offered by AI chatbots. Employees can increasingly turn to AI when they need an answer, an idea or assistance with a task instead of asking a colleague or discussing an issue with another person.

Eyring told FOX Business that AI can provide immediate responses without the disagreement or pushback that can occur during human conversations. She argued that this may make AI interactions feel easier, but repeated dependence on them could reduce opportunities for people to practice interpersonal communication.

The issue is not necessarily the use of AI itself. Instead, the concern is what happens when technology starts replacing routine human interactions that traditionally helped employees develop communication and relationship-building abilities.

Why Social Intelligence Matters at Work

Social intelligence involves understanding other people, communicating effectively, responding appropriately to different situations and developing productive relationships.

These abilities remain particularly important in jobs involving clients, customers, colleagues and business partners. Employees may need to negotiate, explain complex ideas, resolve disagreements, read a room or build trust in situations where a chatbot cannot fully replace human interaction.

Eyring said technical expertise alone may not be enough for employees whose roles require them to advise clients and build relationships. Experience accumulated throughout a career also needs to be communicated effectively to other people.

AI Can Assist Employees Without Replacing Human Interaction

The debate over Eroding Social Skills does not mean companies need to avoid AI. Instead, workplaces may need to distinguish between tasks that benefit from automation and activities where direct human interaction remains important.

AI can help employees draft documents, summarize information, organize data and accelerate research. Human workers can then focus on activities requiring judgment, empathy, negotiation, collaboration and relationship-building.

This approach allows AI to function as a productivity tool rather than becoming a substitute for every workplace conversation.

Concerns Around AI-Generated Job Applications

Eyring also pointed to examples involving job applicants who appeared to rely too heavily on AI when preparing application materials.

She described situations where AI-generated resumes contained unfinished placeholders, illustrating how excessive automation can create problems when users fail to review and personalize the output.

The example highlights a broader workplace issue: using AI effectively still requires human judgment. Employees need to understand what they are producing, verify information and ensure that communication reflects their own experience and personality.

The Workplace Skills AI Cannot Easily Replace

As AI adoption expands, several human skills could remain particularly important:

• Active listening: Understanding what another person actually needs rather than simply responding to keywords.
• Communication: Explaining ideas clearly across different audiences and situations.
• Relationship-building: Establishing trust with colleagues, clients and customers.
• Conflict management: Handling disagreement and finding workable solutions.
• Empathy: Recognizing emotions and responding appropriately.
• Judgment: Knowing when an AI-generated response is incomplete, inappropriate or incorrect.
• Collaboration: Working effectively with people who have different perspectives and priorities.

These skills can become especially valuable when businesses use AI to automate more routine work.

Finding a Balance Between AI and Human Skills

The warning about Eroding Social Skills comes as AI adoption continues to reshape workplace expectations. Companies are increasingly experimenting with AI assistants and automated systems to improve productivity, while employees are learning how to incorporate generative AI into everyday workflows.

The challenge is ensuring that efficiency does not eliminate opportunities for employees to communicate and collaborate directly.

A balanced workplace could use AI for repetitive and information-heavy tasks while deliberately maintaining opportunities for mentoring, teamwork, client conversations, presentations and face-to-face interaction.

AI Adoption Could Make Soft Skills More Important

Rather than making human skills irrelevant, the expansion of AI could increase the value of some abilities that machines cannot easily replicate in workplace relationships.

When technical tasks become easier to automate, employees may increasingly differentiate themselves through how effectively they communicate, collaborate and build trust.

That makes the discussion around Eroding Social Skills less about whether AI should be used and more about how organizations integrate the technology without allowing human interaction to disappear from the workplace.

As Eyring’s comments suggest, businesses may need employees who are capable of using advanced technology while still maintaining the interpersonal abilities required to work effectively with other people.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What does Eroding Social Skills mean in the workplace?

Eroding Social Skills refers to the potential weakening of communication, relationship-building and interpersonal abilities when people become overly dependent on technology instead of interacting with others.

2. Who warned about AI’s impact on workplace social skills?

Pamela Eyring, president of the Protocol School of Washington, raised the concern during an interview with FOX Business.

3. What is social intelligence?

Social intelligence is the ability to understand and interact effectively with other people, including communicating, listening, managing disagreements and building relationships.

4. Can AI replace workplace soft skills?

AI can assist with many communication-related tasks, but skills such as empathy, relationship-building, negotiation and human judgment still depend heavily on interpersonal interaction.

5. Why could AI overreliance affect communication?

If employees consistently use AI instead of communicating with colleagues, they may have fewer opportunities to practice discussion, disagreement, collaboration and relationship-building.

6. Is using AI at work necessarily harmful?

No. AI can improve productivity and assist employees with many routine tasks. The concern raised by Eyring is excessive reliance that could replace valuable human interaction.

7. Which soft skills remain important in an AI workplace?

Communication, active listening, empathy, collaboration, conflict management, judgment and relationship-building remain important workplace skills.

8. What did Pamela Eyring say about AI-generated resumes?

Eyring described examples of job applicants apparently relying heavily on AI, including resumes that still contained unfinished placeholders.

9. How can companies prevent social skills from declining?

Organizations can combine AI training with opportunities for teamwork, mentoring, client interaction, presentations and direct communication.

10. Could AI make human skills more valuable?

As more routine and technical tasks become automated, interpersonal abilities may become increasingly important for roles involving leadership, customers, collaboration and business relationships.