Document Type

Article

Publication Date

7-26-2026

DOI

10.1177/15344843261470602

Publication Title

Human Resource Development Review

Abstract

Artificial intelligence is reshaping cognitive work, but Human Resource Development scholarship has treated this transformation as an organizational training challenge, leaving the collective regeneration of professional expertise unexamined. This conceptual paper introduces the Cognitive Commons framework, integrating commons theory, HRD scholarship, and distributed cognition to explain how rational AI adoption decisions can deplete the shared expertise pool professions require for renewal. The framework distinguishes Internalized Mastery (deep domain knowledge from sustained practice) from Distributed Mastery (orchestrating human-AI systems), and develops the Validation Tether: effective AI oversight depends on the expertise AI adoption may undermine. Early labor market and clinical evidence suggests possible disruption to expertise-regeneration pathways in highly AI-exposed sectors, though adoption is recent and the strongest signals come from leading sectors rather than all professions. Five factors determine occupational vulnerability, and governance arrangements may form across organizational, professional-association, and policy levels. The paper reframes expertise development as collective stewardship rather than organizational optimization, with implications for HRD theory and workforce policy.

Rights

This article is a work of the United States Government, prepared by a federal employee as part of official duties, and is therefore not subject to copyright protection in the United States under 17 U.S.C. Section 105. This deposit is the author accepted manuscript, posted under Sage's author archiving policy, which permits the accepted manuscript to be shared without embargo provided that access is free and the published article is cited.

Data Availability

Not applicable. No empirical datasets were generated or analyzed for this conceptual study.

Comments

Author accepted manuscript. The Version of Record is available from Sage at https://doi.org/10.1177/15344843261470602 and should be cited in preference to this version.

ORCID

0009-0003-1982-830X

Original Publication Citation

Lovett, N. (2026). The tragedy of the cognitive commons: How AI could disrupt the regeneration of professional expertise. Human Resource Development Review. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/15344843261470602

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