Do Students Rely on AI? Analysis of Student-ChatGPT Conversations from a Field Study

Jiayu Zheng; Lingxin Hao; Kelun Lu; Ashi Garg; Mike Reese; Melo-Jean Yap; I-Jeng Wang; Xingyun Wu; Wenrui Huang; Jenna Hoffman; Ariane Kelly; My Le; Ryan Zhang; Yanyu Lin; Muhammad Faayez; Anqi Liu

arXiv · 2508.20244

Do Students Rely on AI? Analysis of Student-ChatGPT Conversations from a Field Study

Jiayu Zheng·Lingxin Hao·Kelun Lu·Ashi Garg·Mike Reese·Melo-Jean Yap·I-Jeng Wang·Xingyun Wu·Wenrui Huang·Jenna Hoffman·Ariane Kelly·My Le·Ryan Zhang·Yanyu Lin·Muhammad Faayez·Anqi Liu

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Abstract

This study explores how college students interact with generative AI (ChatGPT-4) during educational quizzes, focusing on reliance and predictors of AI adoption. Conducted at the early stages of ChatGPT implementation, when students had limited familiarity with the tool, this field study analyzed 315 student-AI conversations during a brief, quiz-based scenario across various STEM courses. A novel four-stage reliance taxonomy was introduced to capture students' reliance patterns, distinguishing AI competence, relevance, adoption, and students' final answer correctness. Three findings emerged. First, students exhibited overall low reliance on AI and many of them could not effectively use AI for learning. Second, negative reliance patterns often persisted across interactions, highlighting students' difficulty in effectively shifting strategies after unsuccessful initial experiences. Third, certain behavioral metrics strongly predicted AI reliance, highlighting potential behavioral mechanisms to explain AI adoption. The study's findings underline critical implications for ethical AI integration in education and the broader field. It emphasizes the need for enhanced onboarding processes to improve student's familiarity and effective use of AI tools. Furthermore, AI interfaces should be designed with reliance-calibration mechanisms to enhance appropriate reliance. Ultimately, this research advances understanding of AI reliance dynamics, providing foundational insights for ethically sound and cognitively enriching AI practices.

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Jiayu Zheng, Lingxin Hao, Kelun Lu, Ashi Garg, Mike Reese, Melo-Jean Yap, I-Jeng Wang, Xingyun Wu, Wenrui Huang, Jenna Hoffman, Ariane Kelly, My Le, Ryan Zhang, Yanyu Lin, Muhammad Faayez, Anqi Liu. 2025-08-27. Do Students Rely on AI? Analysis of Student-ChatGPT Conversations from a Field Study. https://arxiv.org/abs/2508.20244

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