Mapping generative AI use in the human brain: divergent neural, academic, and mental health profiles of functional versus socio emotional AI use
Authors: Junjie Wang, Xianyang Gan, Dan Liu, Jingxian He, Stefania Ferraro, Keith M. Kendrick, Weihua Zhao, Shuxia Yao, Christian Montag, Benjamin Becker
Organizations: The Center of Psychosomatic Medicine, Sichuan Provincial Center for Mental Health, Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China · The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, MOE Key Laboratory for Neuroinformation, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China · Brain-Computer Interface & Brain-Inspired Intelligence Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China · Centre for Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Institute of Collaborative Innovation, University of Macau, Macao SAR, China · Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Macau, Macao SAR, China · Department of Computer and Information Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Macau, Macao SAR, China · MIND & AI Lab, Department of Psychology, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China · SRT AI, Society & Social Dynamics, Faculty of Social Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
The widespread adoption of generative artificial intelligence conversational agents (AICAs) among university students constitutes a novel cognitive social environment whose impact on the maturing brain remains elusive. Combining surveys with high resolution structural MRI, we examined patterns of general, functional, and socio emotional AICA use, academic performance, mental health, and brain structural signatures in a comparatively large sample of 222 young individuals. Across computational anatomy, meta analytic network level, and behavioral decoding analyses, we observed use specific associations. Higher general and functional AICA use frequencies were linked to better academic outcomes (GPA), larger dorsolateral prefrontal and calcarine gray matter volume, and enhanced hippocampal network clustering and local efficiency. In contrast, more frequent socio emotional AICA use was associated with poorer mental health (depression, social anxiety) and lower volume of superior temporal and amygdalar regions central to social and affective processing. These findings indicate that the same class of AI tools exerts distinct effects depending on usage patterns and motivations, engaging prefrontal hippocampal systems that support cognition versus socio emotional systems that may track distress linked usage. These heterogeneities are crucial for designing environments that harness the educational benefits of AI while mitigating mental health risks.
Generative artificial intelligence(GenAI) is reshaping learning in higher education, with particularly pronounced implications for the humanities and social sciences(HSS), where learning outcomes are commonly expressed through written and interpretive forms that align closely with GenAI's capabilities. Yet, systematic evidence on the educational impacts of GenAI on HSS students remains limited. Addressing this gap, this study draws on a large-scale survey of HSS students in China to examine its role in academic development. Guided by relevant learning theories, this study focuses on four dimensions: patterns of use, effects on learning processes and academic performance, challenges associated with GenAI use, and preferred approaches to curricular integration. We found that more than half perceived enhanced learning motivation, independent thinking and creativity, although a substantial minority reported little change or even decline. Comparatively, a notably larger majority reported academic performance gains, although these gains may partly reflect limitations in conventional assessment practices. The study identifies variations in perceived learning and performance improvements among students with differing durations of GenAI experience, along with observable disciplinary differences and modest gender differences. While an overwhelming majority valued the importance of ethical considerations, only slightly more than half were satisfied with privacy protection. Limited accuracy and overreliance emerged as the most pressing concerns reported by students. Students favored partial or optional curricular integration supported by practice-oriented training, and widely recognized GenAI's significance for their future professional development. Grounded in student perspectives, this study offers evidence-based recommendations for the responsible and pedagogically meaningful integration of GenAI
Lei Fan, Fangxue Liu
Design School, Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, Suzhou, 215123, China · School of Computer Science and Informatics, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, L69 3BX, UK
This study examined how high school students with different motivational profiles use generative AI tools in math and writing. Through K-means clustering analysis of survey data from 6,793 Mexican high school students, we identified three distinct motivational profiles based on self-concept and perceived subject value. Results revealed distinct domain-specific AI usage patterns across students with different motivational profiles. Our findings challenge one-size-fits-all AI integration approaches and advocate for motivationally-informed educational interventions.
Generative AI chatbots built for mental health could extend access to care, but evidence from real-world use is limited. We report a single-arm, naturalistic pilot of a foundation model trained for mental health, among 299 US adults with at least moderate depressive or anxiety symptoms who were followed for up to 12 months. Depression and anxiety symptoms fell by 10 weeks (Cohen's d 0.93 and 0.79), with loneliness, behavioral activation, and social interaction improving. Clinicians confirmed that automated safeguards were escalated appropriately. Participants fell into non-responding (57.2%), improving (37.1%) and rapidly improving (5.7%) trajectories. Early working alliance and greater engagement were associated with better outcomes. The AI deployed ten identified intervention families whose delivery varied with baseline anxiety and depression, with the overall ratio of clinical to non-clinical content increasing according to severity without survey information access. These findings support the feasibility of purpose-built AI for mental health.
Thomas D. Hull, Lizhe Zhang, Caitlin A. Stamatis +2
Slingshot AI · CREATIV Lab, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington · Department of Psychiatry, NYU School of Medicine +1