Digit studentship on AI/human interaction.

AI selecting or evaluating humans. Professional and ethical tensions in the use of AI in organisations. (ESRC Centre for Digital Futures at Work PhD Studentship) (2026)

What you get

The successful candidate will recieve:

• Full UK tuition fees only for up to four years.
• A stipend equivalent to UKRI doctoral stipend,  £21,383 (2026/27) per annum for up to four years.

Type of award

Postgraduate Research

PhD project

AI selecting or evaluating humans. Professional and ethical tensions in the use of AI in organisations.

Supervisors at Sussex: Prof Dimitra Petrakaki and Dr Zahira Jaser.

Digital transformation has positioned artificial intelligence as a vehicle for organisational efficiency across sectors such as healthcare, recruitment, and talent management. Organizations worldwide are increasingly adopting AI systems to select and evaluate humans, with promises of objectivity, efficiency, and data-driven decision-making. These AI interventions aim to fundamentally alter how professionals (clinicians, nurses, hiring managers, HR practitioners, team leaders) within organisations make decisions and interact with workers, prospective employees, clients and even patients. There are different ways in which AI can support organisational processes, including automating selection decisions, substantially changing how professionals evaluate and assess humans at work, and introducing algorithmic evaluation systems that significantly alter their work. In addition, some of these AI solutions intend to intrude into professionals' work practices, through, for instance, algorithmic nudges or automated decision prompts, altering how professionals make decisions. Yet organisations are not always ready to adopt and use these AI solutions, given practical, ethical and governance questions. Work pressures amongst professionals, post-digital transformation fatigue, low morale and low enthusiasm, ethical uncertainty and poor governance create resistance to adopt AI technologies. AI implementation, such as algorithmic management, might even be perceived as a means of controlling their autonomy at work and their decision-making. Ideas that bias can lead to discriminatory selection and evaluation are also becoming more widespread and influencing perceptions of AI use. Conflictual situations whereby technological efficiency and ethics and governance collide are part of this new digital work terrain, but often not explored in depth.

This PhD project will focus on identifying and mapping the sociological and/or social-psychological challenges surrounding the adoption of AI for human selection and evaluation. It can explore, amongst others, professionals' perceptions of the AI, and capture the factors (e.g., lack of AI literacy, limited/lack of ethical understanding, impact of AI on wellbeing, inadequate governance, perception of AI bias etc.) that speed up, deter and delay technological adoption and use. The research is expected to adopt a series of methodologies, broadly aligned with an interpretivist, social constructionist perspective.

The research student will be part of the Digit Doctoral Network and will benefit from support from the Business School’s early-career researcher networks. They will receive research training as part of the first-year programme of the Management Integrated PhD degree and will be integrated into the Mid- and early-Career Researchers Forum of Digit.

Eligibility

• Minimum of a 2.1 undergraduate honours degree.

• A Master’s degree ideally in a relevant subject area, with ideally at least a merit mark (60%), or equivalent professional experience.
• Proof of proficiency in English language to meet the university’s entry requirements.
• We require a 2.1 undergraduate honours degree, or equivalent, and a Master’s degree in a relevant subject area such as work and employee relations, value chains and economic geography, political economy or agri-food studies.

Number of scholarships available

One.

Deadline

How to apply

Please submit by email to Professor Dimitra Petrakaki and Dr Zahira Jaser at d.petrakaki@sussex.ac.uk and z.jaser@sussex.ac.uk as one pdf file an application including:

• A statement of interest that outlines why you would like to be considered for this studentship project and what you would like to research (maximum 1 page)
• A CV (2-3 pages)
• Degree transcripts and certificates
• A piece of written work (e.g. an essay or project from your undergraduate or master’s degree)
• Names and contact details for two academic referees
•  

Shortlisted applicants will be invited to interview on a rolling basis. The successful candidate will then need to apply for the PhD programme at the University of Sussex.

Sponsors

University of Sussex and ESRC

Contact us

For any enquiries about the PhD studentship research proposal, please contact Professor Dimitra Petrakaki (d.petrakaki@sussex.ac.uk) or Dr Zahira Jaser (z.jaser@sussex.ac.uk )

For questions relating to the application process, contact business-researchstudents@sussex.ac.uk.

Timetable

Application Deadline: 15 May 2026

Interview and Decision: June 2026

Start: Late September 2026