American college students are increasingly dependent on artificial intelligence (AI)-based tools, resulting in severe anxiety when the technology is unavailable and leading to psychological distress, according to a study published in the journal Telematics and Informatics. Scientists call this phenomenon NoAIphobia, or anxiety in the absence of AI.
The researchers surveyed 393 students and analyzed the data using structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM), which helps understand complex cause-and-effect relationships between various non-obvious factors. The unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) served as the basis for the study. This model helps explain and predict why people decide to adopt a new technology and how this decision translates into actual behavior.
The average age of the experiment participants was approximately 29 years. About 54% of the participants were women. All students completed a detailed questionnaire designed to assess their motivation and psychological state throughout the semester as they studied and applied AI for academic purposes.
During the survey, scientists identified a pattern: the desire to meet the expectations of others – the fear of falling behind peers – turned out to be stronger than the effectiveness and quality of technology use. Students used AI in the belief that fellow students were gaining academic benefits through it. The expectation of efficiency, which is saving time and effort, influences dependence on artificial intelligence more than the expectation of quality in the form of improved work results, the researchers believe.
They described this as fear of lack of AI – an anxiety that makes people feel unable to get work done if they lose access to artificial intelligence. At the same time, scientists have discovered in the addiction itself two opposing psychological states that appear as a result of its formation. Both of them are related to the anxiety experienced by students who use artificial intelligence technologies in their studies.
“Phobia is positively associated with continued AI use as students seek to avoid anxiety associated with AI withdrawal, and stigmatization of AI use is negatively associated with continued AI use due to fear of social judgment,” the study noted.
As a result, students focused more on the fact that they had artificial intelligence tools than on the actual results of using it in their studies. These results, as noted in the scientific publication, highlight the need for “clear institutional policies” regarding AI in relation to the education sector.
Scientists recommend developing rules that will reduce condemnation of the use of technology and clarify the boundaries of acceptable use of AI. Separately, they mention the importance of recognizing dependence on such tools as a psychological and educational problem.
To solve this problem, the authors propose introducing consulting services, revising the structure of courses and the assessment system in order to increase the cognitive involvement of students. They also recommend discussions about norms for AI use to reduce students' inflated perceptions of how often their classmates use such tools.
At the same time, the study's time frame was short and the sample wasn't large enough to fully prove the pattern behind AI anxiety, one of the study's co-authors, Chunshik Lee, an assistant professor of communication at the University of North Florida, told PsyPost.
“The main conclusion is that students’ dependence on artificial intelligence is associated not only with laziness, but also with social factors and anxiety. We believe that the long-term effect of the devaluation of human labor due to AI may manifest itself in the form of a phobia,” emphasizes Lee.
In future studies, the researchers intend to go beyond academic tasks and examine whether the identified psychological patterns hold true when people use artificial intelligence for personal entertainment or creative hobbies. To fully understand the technology, it is necessary to study both the cognitive and emotional costs, the researchers say.
