Developing an attitude scale towards artificial intelligence among university students and the role of artificial intelligence in students' academic success

Artificial intelligence technologies, which are widely used in many fields such as health, entertainment, law, and commerce, are gradually increasing their impact in education. In fact, artificial intelligence makes learning processes more effective and motivating with the numerous benefits it offers. This situation has made it important to understand university students' perspectives on artificial intelligence. In this context, the primary aim of this study is to develop a valid and reliable scale that can measure university students' attitudes towards artificial intelligence due to the lack of existing measurement tools. In addition, the study aimed to examine the mediating role of critical thinking skills, career motivation and academic motivation in the effect of attitude towards artificial intelligence on academic achievement. This study was designed with cross-sectional and correlational research method in line with the quantitative research design. A total of 715 university students were reached through online platforms during the scale development process, which was the first stage of the research, and 600 university students were reached in the second stage. Socio-Demographic Information Form, Artificial Intelligence Attitude Scale for University Youth, Career Competencies Scale, Learning Motivation Scale in Higher Education, Critical Thinking Skills Scale and Academic Achievement Inventory for University Students were used as data collection tools. As a result of the research, it was determined that academic motivation, career motivation and critical thinking skills mediated the effect of AI academic benefit, AI career and future planning and AI motivation on academic achievement, while only academic motivation mediated the effect of AI daily use on academic achievement. This result indicates that awareness of artificial intelligence is effective on students' academic outcomes, motivational factors and thinking skills. However, the study emphasizes that the use of artificial intelligence does not always lead to positive outcomes and that necessary measures should be taken by educators, policy makers and social workers working with young people for responsible use.