As artificial intelligence becomes embedded across a growing range of work activities, work itself is being rapidly transformed. Tasks once thought to require uniquely human abilities are increasingly automated, reshaping both how work is performed and what it consists in. What does this mean for the value of work?
For most people, work is not merely a source of income or other material goods; it is also central to a sense of purpose, identity, self-realization, and significance. As these technologies advance, a pressing question emerges: what happens to meaningful work? Will it be diminished, as workers are left with narrower, less engaging, and less consequential roles? Or might it be expanded, as routine burdens are lifted and new space opens for autonomy, creativity, and self-expression?
This workshop brings together interdisciplinary perspectives to examine how technological change is reshaping the conditions under which work can be meaningful, and what this implies for the future of working life.
Program: June 4
Location: Pilestredet 48: P173
- 09:30–10:10 - Meaningful Work in an Age of Automation: Concepts, Assumptions, and Directions (Edmund Henden)
- 10:15–10:55 - Theory-Guided Construct Discovery in Meaningful Work: Using Computational Language Methods to Compare Competing Frameworks (Christina G. L. Nerstad, with Malte Runge, Oscar Fjell & Edmund Henden)
- 11:05–11:45 - Workplace Artificial Intelligence and the Perception of Meaningfulness in Work: Heterogeneity in Occupational Classes (Håvard Helland)
- 11:45–12:45 - Lunch
- 12:45–13:25 - How Automation Undermines Meaningful Work (Hannah Altehenger)
- 13:30–14:10 - Meaningful Life Through Meaningful Work? (Sigurd Nøstberg Hovd)
- 14:20–15:00 - The AI and Meaning Sweet Spot: Some Reflections on a Desirable but Elusive Ideal for the Future of Meaningful Work (Sven Nyholm)
- 15:00–15:20 - Coffee & Tea Break
- 15:20–16:00 - Will Life Be Less Meaningful in AI Utopia? (Cristian Löw & Per Algander)
- 16:10–16:50 - Working for the Machine (Michael Barnes)
Program: June 5
Location: BI Norwegian Business School - Oslo campus - Nydalsveien 37, A2-Red 14
- 09:30–10:30 - Mental capital and well-being at work (Cary Cooper)
- 10:40–11:20 - Explaining the internet usage of SMEs: The impact of market orientation, behavioural norms, motivation and technology acceptance (Marjolein C.J. Caniëls)
- 11:30–12:10 - Daily AI use and meaningful work: A diary study among knowledge workers (Eleana Tell and Lisa Tømmervik, Christina's master students)
- 12:20–13:00 - Meaningful work in a context of technological transformation: A longitudinal study (Christina)
