AI as Double-Edged Sword: A Quantitative study of Teacher Efficiency, Cognitive Load and Burnout in Education
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54938/ijemdss.2026.05.5.863Keywords:
AI, Efficiency, Cognitive load, Burnout, Secondary educationAbstract
Teaching practices have been transformed by Artificial Intelligence (AI) integration in education. Use of AI has automated administrative tasks. Instructional delivery has been enhanced, and personalized learning is supported by using AI in education. Its use promises to increase efficiency and reduce workload, but there is emerging evidence that AI usage may contribute to burnout among teachers simultaneously by increasing stress caused by technology usage and cognitive load . This study explores dual role of AI-based educational technologies towards burnout, by analyzing whether AI works as a tool of relief or a source of psychological stress by using quantitative research design with a sample of 500 school teachers. In this study the relation between use of AI, perceived efficiency, cognitive load, and levels of burnout has been analyzed. The findings of this study indicate that while AI usage in education significantly improve task efficiency (r = 0.62), it also pose new problems by elevating mental workload that contribute to burnout (R² = 0.49) among teachers. It is concluded, based on the finding of this study that AI usage in education works as a double-edged sword by providing both benefits and problems. It is emphasized that there a dire need for strategies to implement AI usage in education with a proper balance reducing problems while enhancing its benefits.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Nazia Fardous, Muhammad Idrees, Muhammad Tanveer Afzal
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