Hiding_behind_machines_updated

The transfer of tasks with sometimes far-reaching moral implications to au-

tonomous systems raises a number of ethical questions. In addition to fundamental

questions about the moral agency of these systems, behavioral issues arise. This ar-

ticle focuses on the responsibility of agents who decide on our behalf. We investigate

the empirically accessible question of whether the production of moral outcomes

by an agent is systematically judged differently when the agent is artificial and not

human. The results of a laboratory experiment suggest that decision-makers can

actually rid themselves of guilt more easily by delegating to machines than by del-

egating to other people. Our results imply that the availability of artificial agents

could provide stronger incentives for decision makers to delegate morally sensitive

decisions.