Creative Labor Displacement Anxiety in the Age of Generative AI

Deeksha S; Komal.S S

doi:10.36948/ijfmr.2026.v08i04.84915

Creative Labor Displacement Anxiety in the Age of Generative AI

Author(s)	Dr. Deeksha S, Ms. Komal.S S
Country	India
Abstract	The rapid dissemination and proliferation of generative artificial intelligence (AI) have revolutionized creative industries, calling into question traditional assumptions that humans alone create. Although generative AI tools promote efficiency, scalability, and innovation in creating content, the increasing use of generative AI has also created considerable psychological uncertainty for those working in the creative sector. This article explores the anxiety of creative labor displacement caused by generative AI, identifying the emotional, technological and organizational elements that affect creative workers' reactions to the transformative impact of AI on the creative and cultural economy. This research used a quantitative, cross sectional research design, employing a positivistic research philosophy, to collect data from 312 creative professionals who operate across multiple creative sectors. Building on the concepts of technology acceptance and displacement anxiety in previous literature, the article explores five variables — namely, perceived threat from generative AI, creative autonomy, trust in generative AI systems, social influence and facilitating conditions — which are believed to affect creative labor displacement anxiety. Using structural equation modelling (SEM) the authors tested the hypotheses and assessed the goodness-of-fit of the proposed model. The results show that the most powerful predictor of displacement anxiety is perceived threat from generative AI. This indicates that creative professionals increasingly see AI as a competitive substitute for human creativity. On the other hand, levels of creative autonomy, confidence in using generative AI systems, and facilitating conditions all reduced anxiety. Therefore, there appears to be a need for human control, ethical deployment of AI systems and institutional support for enabling both human centered development and successful implementation of AI systems in creative sectors. Furthermore, social influence increased anxiety, showing that public discourses around generative AI adoption and peer narratives represent a major factor in determining the psychological response to AI adoption by creative professionals. Therefore, this study contributes to an emerging body of literature on AI and work by expanding displacement anxiety research to include creative labor contexts. Further, it provides important implications for managers and policymakers interested in promoting human centered approaches to integrating AI into creative labor processes that preserve creative identity, cultural value and worker well-being.
Keywords	Generative Artificial Intelligence, Creative Labor, Displacement Anxiety, Creative Economy, Technology Acceptance, Human–AI Collaboration
Published In	Volume 8, Issue 4, July-August 2026
Published On	2026-08-02
DOI	https://doi.org/10.36948/ijfmr.2026.v08i04.84915

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Creative Labor Displacement Anxiety in the Age of Generative AI

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