Trust In AI and Human Financial Advisors

Abstract

As Artificial Intelligence (AI) is increasingly integrated into financial decision-making, understanding when and why people trust AI advice over humans’ becomes critical. This paper examines how the perceived urgency and importance of financial decisions affect preference for AI or human financial advisors, while also reviewing existing research on the neuroscience behind human trust, the distinct traits of AI and human advisors, and how honest communication of confidence or uncertainty shapes trust. A survey was conducted where 10 participants assessed 10 financial scenarios, and selected between two AI-generated recommendations that were labeled as AI or human generated. Then, participants rated each scenario’s perceived urgency and importance. Participants selected AI over human-labeled advice 54% of the time. The mean perceived importance was similar for AI and human-labeled selections, while mean urgency was higher for AI rather than for human-labeled selections. This discrepancy suggests that the urgency, rather than importance of a financial scenario, may be more closely related to advisor preference. These findings are relevant for individuals seeking financial advice, because understanding the driving factors of trust in AI can help with making informed choices about relying on AI advice. However, these results should be interpreted with caution due to the limited sample size and findings should be regarded as preliminary.