The Crisis of Perceived Legitimacy of pre-service officials in AI Bureaucracy for Value-rationality

Abstract: This study empirically investigates the impact of AI bureaucracy's instrumental traits on the value-rational expectations of pre-service public officials. While AI maximizes efficiency through technical consistency, its mechanical impersonality risks triggering a crisis of perceived legitimacy and psychological alienation. A survey of 169 undergraduate students majoring in Public Administration revealed that perceptions of AI’s impersonality (Mean=3.80) significantly exceed those of its consistency (Mean=3.10). Regression analysis identified mechanical impersonality as the primary driver of the demand for public communication (β=.512, ρ