College Student Opinions on Generative Artificial Intelligence for Educational Experiences

Abstract

College students’ opinions and attitudes of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) can provide insights into societal changes and help with strategic planning for GenAI integration in the US. To investigate college students’ perception of GenAI, this research collected and analyzed college student publications from representative universities in four regions in the US (Michigan, California, Texas, and Massachusetts: Mid-West, West, South, and Northeast). These publications were analyzed with Thematic, Sentiment, and Intensity analysis. Thematic analysis revealed the top 10 key themes discussed by college publications. Sentiment analysis showed that three of the 10 themes had positive sentiments across the four US regions, one had mixed sentiments, and six had negative sentiments. Intensity analysis revealed that topics related to themes about writing, creative fields, and school guidelines and policies were frequently and strongly expressed across all four regions. This study provides data and concrete evidence that college students’ opinions of GenAI have both similarities and differences across the four US regions. These insights call for human factors professionals and GenAI developers to further investigate and pay close attention to regional differences and similarities in the further development of Human-Centered GenAI.