Relax, comms pros: a new survey of American adults conducted by the San Francisco-based Academy of Art University found that creative skills are perceived as the most valuable to combat an impending AI takeover. According to the survey, over half (54 percent) feel that creativity is their best chance at career longevity, agreeing that creative skills outweigh both physical and technical skills in an increasingly robotic workplace.
“This survey is a clear reminder of the importance of valuing creativity and cultivating art and design skills in the age of AI,” said Elisa Stephens, president of the Academy of Art University, in a news release. “As technology increasingly replaces human labor across multiple job sectors, it is crucial that we shift our educational focus to developing creative skills, and the role they play in driving success in the 21st century workplace.”
Over 90 percent of those who expressed an opinion believe they are creative and over half feel most valued in their lives for their creative skills (53 percent) rather than their physical or technical skills. Interestingly, only 16 percent of men feel valued for their physical abilities.
The survey also looked at Americans’ perceptions on the future of work, careers and education
When it comes to education, of those who expressed an opinion, 82 percent believe that a four-year college degree remains a major advantage for young people to achieve their career goals. Lack of self-belief is the highest cited reason for Americans not to have achieved the education they want or would have wanted (41 percent). This is seen as more of a limiting factor than mental/physical disabilities (24 percent), poor grades (20 percent), or racial discrimination (9 percent).
When asked about the fastest route to reach their career goals, 1 in 4 men believe that breaking the rules offered an advantage over following them, while for women, 82 percent believe following rules was the fastest way to success.
Other key findings include:
- 86 percent of people believe themselves, rather than others, to be their biggest barrier to success
- Almost two thirds believe mental strength is the most important quality to overcome life’s challenges (63 percent), outweighing financial security (20 percent), physical strength (9 percent) and creativity (8 percent)
- Half of all millennials polled believe they have the job they always dreamed of, which is more than any other generation alive today. Comparatively only just over a third (37 percent) of GenXers have the same opinion
- Broken down by gender, over half of the men surveyed professed to having the job they always dreamed of while only one-third of females felt the same way
See the full survey results here.
The researchers polled over 1,000 Americans aged 18-65.
