AI, Teams & Negotiations

My research sits at the intersection of Artificial Intelligence, organizational group dynamics, and business negotiation processes. I examine AI as the newest ‘teammate,’ focusing on whether teams embrace, resist, or are compelled to use it, and how attitudes and choice shape whether human–AI collaboration soars or stalls. I am particularly interested in AI’s potential to function as an autonomous agent in complex multi-party negotiations, such as high-stakes procurement, where it can model preferences, optimize trade-offs, and dynamically adapt strategies in real time. I also investigate how AI creates new team faultlines, shifting subgroup boundaries as members collectively renegotiate what it means to be a ‘teammate.’ Ultimately, my goal is to build theory-driven, practical frameworks that help managers to foster effective human–AI collaboration, while championing openness to diverse perspectives, methodological innovation, and interdisciplinary partnerships to keep pace with AI-driven change.

Katerina Bezrukova is an Associate Professor in the School of Management at the University at Buffalo. Bezrukova is an expert in group and team behavior on topics including AI and technology, conflict management and negotiation, decision-making processes, performance and health. She quantifies human behavior to predict team chemistry and performance, and advises people how to survive and excel when they are in the minority in organizations. Her work appears in Organization Science, Journal of Applied Psychology, Psychological Bulletin, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, and Personnel Psychology, and has been featured on the PBS News Hour, ESPN the Magazine, and the Atlantic. She is a past Chair of the Conflict Management Division and incoming Chair of the DEI Division of the Academy of Management.