Many students in China are choosing to learn AI mostly out of ‘guilt or shame,’ not because they enjoy it, study finds

A new study published this week in the journal Science of Learning found many university students in China are using AI tools not out of their own interest or enjoyment, but rather because they feel pressured and shamed into it.

AI is becoming a burgeoning application in higher education, with the younger generation out in front: a February SurveyMonkey report found more than 60% of Gen Z reported using AI for learning.

But AI’s ubiquity in Gen Z’s college lives doesn’t tell the full story of how students feel about the integration of the technology in their classrooms. Researchers in China found that fewer students were motivated to use AI due to intrinsic motivation, or wanting to learn to use the technology because they feel they would enjoy it or gain something from it.

“This meant that many students learned AI primarily out of guilt or shame and not because of personal enjoyment,” the study authors wrote. 

Beyond students feeling the need to keep up with their changing educational landscape as more institutions recognize uses for AI, students in China in particular may fear “losing face” around peers, with the rejection of AI learning seen potentially as a sign they are inferior or lagging behind their cohort.

“Consequently, the concerns for preserving one’s self-image could drive students to prioritize introjected regulation in AI learning, as they want to get approval and avoid negative judgments from peers and significant others,” the study said.

Extrinsic vs. intrinsic motivations to use AI

But as AI has transformed the labor market, pressure to learn these tools is mounting for young people preparing to enter the workforce, contributing to extrinsic motivations to use AI, according to Stephen Aguilar, a professor of education at the University of Southern California’s Rossier School of Education.

“A lot of students are in a position where they recognize that the future of their employment or the future of their livelihoods are somewhat dependent on understanding what AI is and how to use it capably,” he told Fortune. 

Indeed, Microsoft’s layoff total for this year swelled to 15,000 in July after the tech company shed 9,000 workers as part of its continued effort to streamline operations by embracing AI.

But students driven to use AI by external factors may miss other opportunities that intrinsically motivated peers take advantage of, Aguilar explained. 

“They might not be pushed to understand the deeper reasons why different AI technologies function the way they do,” he said. “Whereas, if they’re more intrinsically motivated, they want to get into the weeds, they’ll want to actually dig deeper, maybe innovate more.”

“That’s how you get the next wave of innovation, or the leaders who truly understand what the [ethical] implications are,” he added.

While AI use in higher education is dictated by government and school policies, educators ultimately have a significant say in shaping why students want to use AI, Aguilar argued.

With mixed evidence that AI enhances productivity or solves problems, instructors should consider how to expose students to AI tools that can help develop intrinsic motivation toward using the technology.

For example, what AI technology can empower students to think critically as opposed to just feeding them the answers?

“That’ll help them really design their own learning environments to use AI in a way that encourages students to dig deeper and to get excited about the problems that they’re trying to teach,” he said. “As opposed to feeling compelled to use the latest technology that will help them get a job or something like that.”