ChatGPT a hit among students who struggle to pay attention: Study

NEW DELHI: Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools like Open AI’s ChatGPT are widespread hits among students who have problems paying attention, according to a study on Wednesday.

Researchers in Sweden looked into how teenagers related to how they used and thought of generative AI chatbots as helpful for their homework. Their findings were published in the journal Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence.

The scientists from Lund University carried out two investigations. The first included 485 teenagers between the ages of 12 and 16; while the second had 359 pupils aged 15 to 19.

According to the surveys, older students used AI chatbots at a rate of roughly 53 per cent while younger kids used them at a rate of about 15 per cent. A plausible rationale could be that advanced learners receive more intricate projects and, consequently, may employ AI systems more frequently.

“Students with more attention to challenges found these tools particularly useful, especially for completing assignments. This highlights these tools’ role as potential support for students struggling with cognitive processes crucial for academic success,” said Johan Klarin, a school psychologist and research assistant at the Department of Psychology at the varsity.

More importantly, the results of the experiments demonstrated that students who had greater difficulty with attention issues thought generative AI was far more helpful for their coursework than their classmates. According to the researchers, one explanation could be that these pupils experience higher productivity gains than their peers.

The findings aim to inform educators, policymakers, and technology developers about the role of AI in education and its balance with academic integrity.

However, the study's limitations include self-reported data and limited generalisation, which prompt the need for more studies like this to be conducted so that more concrete opinions can be formed.