By Rebecca Hoffa

Asians in the U.S. are more likely to be likened to robots or machines, viewed as lacking human feeling and emotion compared to other groups in the United States, according to National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded research by Franki Kung, associate professor in the Purdue University Department of Psychological Sciences. As an industrial-organizational and social psychologist, Kung is interested in exploring workplace practices that condone this phenomenon of mechanistic dehumanization — a type of dehumanization that strips people of their individuality and human nature — and approaches to change it.

“There seems to be an assumption we have accepted as a society that part of professionalism means suppressing who you are, not bringing your personal aspects to work and keeping your emotions to yourself,” Kung said. “Workplace culture is often structured in a way that makes people less human so organizations can function more smoothly. In this context, that often translates to greater efficiency for the benefit of the organization and much less for the benefit of the employees.”

By collecting both qualitative and quantitative data from employees throughout the country, Kung has seen firsthand the poor working conditions and exploitation that have occurred as a result of mechanistic dehumanization.

“If this (work) is such a significant portion of our life, wouldn’t we want to think about how to make this part of our life more meaningful and more human-serving than task-serving?” Kung said. “We work because we want to live, so what does living look like?”

Although he’s approaching business-related issues, for Kung, it’s important to approach the issue from a psychology lens to ensure proper solutions for workers, rather than solutions purely aimed at increasing business growth at the expense of employee satisfaction.

To read the entire article: https://www.purdue.edu/hhs/news/2026/01/humanizing-the-workplace-psychological-sciences-researcher-explores-ways-to-combat-robotization-of-asian-american-employees/

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