Factors and Impacts of ChatGPT Adoptionfor Academic Purposes in Higher Learning Institutions: Students’ Perspectives

Artificial intelligence (Al) tools have brought a shift and transformation in various sectors including education by providing innovative solutions to enhance learning experiences. One such Al tool that has gained significant attention is ChatGPT (Generative Pre-trained Transformer) for its ability to generate realistic texts based on user prompts. The integration of artificial intelligence (Al) tools like ChatGPT into education settings has revolutionized the learning process for students in higher education. ChatGPT, developed by OpenAl, is an Al-driven conversational model that generates human-like responses. This research delves into the factors that influence students to use ChatGPT for academic purposes and explores the multifaceted impacts it brings to the academic environment. By incorporating students’ perspectives, this study identifies 6 factors encouraging the use of ChatGPT for academic purposes to students. Additionally, it seeks to assess Knowledge, Attitude, and Behavior (KAB) of students on the use of ChatGPT. The research methodology involved is qualitative approach where by document review, interviews were employed, focus group discussions, and observation. This research concludes that ChatGPT should remain being a sub tool for assisting students to advance their learning and not being an official tool for completing every work they are assigned at colleges otherwise students will graduate with low ability in generating their own ideas. The results suggest that Academic Institutions should emphasize the importance of critical thinking skills through various exercises and assignments that require students to analyze, evaluate, and solve problems independently. By encouraging critical thinking, students can develop their cognitive abilities beyond what AI tools like ChatGPT can provide.