Developing a scale on the anxiety dimension of generative artificial intelligence

This study aims to develop a valid and reliable scale to measure university students' anxiety levels regarding generative artificial intelligence (GAI) technologies. The rapid spread of AI technologies in social, academic, and professional fields has led individuals to develop various concerns about these technologies. The lack of a scale to measure AI anxiety limits the understanding of the psychological effects of AI and the development of interventions for these effects, making it difficult to manage individuals' adaptation processes to technological transformation in a healthy manner. In this scale development study based on quantitative research methods, the 52-item scale created based on theoretical foundations was reduced to 47 items in line with expert opinions. Using data obtained from 651 students enrolled at Balıkesir University in the 2023-2024 academic year, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) reduced the scale to 28 items, while confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) reduced it to 15 items. The final scale has a five-factor structure consisting of work and career anxiety, social relationship anxiety, academic integrity anxiety, security and privacy anxiety, and technology addiction anxiety. The fit indices obtained as a result of CFA showed that the scale's structural validity was excellent. Second-order DFA results also confirmed that the scale's sub-dimensions meaningfully converged under a higher-order factor named "ÜYZ Anxiety." Analyses revealed that students' overall anxiety levels regarding ÜYZ technologies were slightly above average. The highest anxiety level was found in the social relationships anxiety dimension, while the lowest anxiety levels were observed in the work and career anxiety dimension. In conclusion, the developed ULT Anxiety Scale possesses psychometric properties that enable it to measure university students' anxiety toward these technologies in a valid and reliable manner.