AI-Mediated Leadership in Teams and Organizations: Psychological Processes, Authority, and Accountability

AI systems - ranging from decision-support tools and recommender systems to algorithmic performance management and generative AI - are increasingly embedded in how work is directed, coordinated, and evaluated. As a result, leadership is no longer enacted only through interpersonal influence or hierarchical authority; it also unfolds through AI-mediated information, automated recommendations, and algorithmic control mechanisms. This Research Topic invites contributions that examine the psychology of “leading with AI”: how individuals engaged in leading interpret AI inputs, negotiate agency and expertise, calibrate trust and reliance, and experience responsibility, moral judgment, and accountability when key leadership functions are partially delegated to AI systems.This Research Topic centers on leadership as an ongoing psychological and relational process within hybrid human-AI arrangements. We welcome theoretical and empirical work that clarifies the micro- and meso-level mechanisms of leadership under AI augmentation - especially where AI meaningfully shapes what decision-makers see, know, and do.Topics of interest include (but are not limited to): • Sensemaking and judgment under AI-generated or AI-filtered information • Trust, reliance, calibration, and over-/under-reliance in AI-supported leadership • Leader/manager identity, role construction, and legitimacy in AI-augmented settings • Agency, control, and the experience of being “directed” by algorithmic systems • Responsibility diffusion, accountability attribution, and moral emotions in human-AI decisions • Human override, contestability, voice, and resistance in algorithmic management contexts • Affective and motivational responses to AI monitoring, evaluation, and feedback systems • Fairness perceptions and ethical reasoning when AI recommendations conflict with professional judgmentExample research questions: • When and why do leaders follow, override, or selectively integrate AI advice? • How does AI-mediated evaluation change perceived autonomy, legitimacy, and leader identity? • How do teams negotiate accountability when outcomes are shaped by both human judgment and AI recommendations? • What psychological processes support effective coordination when AI structures workflows and priorities? Topic editors: Jinglu Jiang, Chou-Yu Tsai, Ann-Frances Cameron, Ruxandra Monica Luca Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/78423/ai-mediated-leadership-in-teams-and-organizations-psychological-processes-authority-and-accountability