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When combinations of humans and AI are useful: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Nature Human Behaviour · published 2024-10-28 · Vol. 8, pp. 2293–2303
Open the sourcevaccaro-2024-human-ai-combinations · last checked 2026-10-18 · voice: research · origin: global north
Preregistered meta-analysis of experiments published 2020 to mid-2023, mostly short laboratory and online tasks. Open access.
Claims that cite this source · 2
Source assertion· confidence high· passage checked
In a meta-analysis of experiments, human–AI combinations on average performed worse than the better of humans or AI working alone; losses appeared in decision tasks, while content-creation tasks showed gains.
Used in: Meaningful human oversight, Over-reliance and deskilling
Interpretation· confidence medium· passage checked
When AI assists a decision, a governance question is who keeps the authority to decide, to override the system, and to be accountable for the result. Arrangements that leave that authority unclear can shift judgment to whoever controls the system and risk to those least able to check it.
Used in: Meaningful human oversight, Accountability, Over-reliance and deskilling, Sycophancy and engagement-driven agreement