Empathic Misallocation
Empathic Misallocation is an EST hypothesis about possible costs when human care or relational investment is directed toward systems that generate relational cues without human reciprocity. The construct and its outcomes require direct evidence.
The term does not establish that a particular user was harmed, that AI interaction necessarily displaces human connection, or that a biological, clinical, legal, or causal mechanism has been proven. Read the current research profile at Empathy Ethicist.