Christians more likely to use AI in their work

Christians are more likely than non-Christians to use artificial intelligence in their work, a new survey from the Barna Group finds.

The data suggest that nearly two-thirds of Christians in the workforce use AI technology “often,” “sometimes” or “not very much” for their work, while only about half of non-Christians responded the same. Although 38 percent of Christian respondents told Barna that they do not use AI at all in their work, 52 percent of non-Christians responded the same. The study also suggests that although AI is considered valuable for research, it is not typically viewed as a way to find reliable advice or ask specific probing spiritual questions.

“U.S. adults don’t see AI as a ‘catch-all’ tool to be used for every kind of problem or need,” the survey report said. “Instead, they are most interested in using AI for answering questions (37 percent) and research (35 percent) — and they’re far less interested in using this technology for advice (14 percent) or spiritual questions (8 percent).”

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Only 8 percent of Christians and 4 percent of non-Christians are interested in using AI to study the Bible. Christians are slightly more likely to trust the AI tool response about beliefs than non-Christians (29 percent vs. 23 percent)..

“These findings suggest two takeaways,” the report said. “First, there may be a need for greater digital literacy directed at Christians who seek to use AI to answer nuanced questions about faith. The higher trust Christians have in AI for these purposes is notable and something for Christian leaders to note. Second, given the lack of trust from non-Christians with AI and faith, leaders will want to be mindful if choosing to use AI as any sort of evangelistic or apologetic tool — you may be met with skepticism or outright distrust.”

Last November, Barna released a report finding that 51 percent of surveyed respondents believed that AI is not good for the church overall, with only 22 percent saying it was.

–Alan Goforth | MV