Thursday, April 30, 2026
9:35 am - 11:15 am
SWEN 119
Join us to hear from top students who will present their original sociological research which includes qualitative/ethnographic methods and quantitative/survey methods.
Student Abstracts
AI has gone viral! : AI Usage and Attitudes among College Students
This study examined patterns of artificial intelligence (AI) usage among undergraduate students at California Lutheran University, with a focus on demographic variables such as academic year and gender. As AI becomes increasingly added into school settings, research is limited but exists on how college students engage with these technologies as tools. A cross-sectional survey consisting of 32 questions was administered through qualtrics to 115 undergraduate students using convenience and snowball sampling. The survey measured overall AI usage, weekly frequent use, and demographic characteristics. The group hypothesis predicted that first year students would use AI more frequently than seniors, while my individual hypothesis predicted that male students would use AI more than female students. Descriptive and crosstabulations analysis revealed that AI usage was high among most students overall, but the patterns still contradicted the original hypothesis. The study highlights the importance of examining academic pressures, college policies, and student attitudes towards AI ethics when looking at the relationship between college and AI.