Student views in AI Ethics and Social Impact

TL;DR

This study explores how second-year computer science students perceive the ethical and societal impacts of AI, revealing gender differences in awareness and ethical considerations, which could influence future AI education.

Contribution

It provides new insights into student perceptions of AI ethics and social impact from a gender perspective, based on a survey of 230 students.

Findings

Students believe AI will significantly impact daily life in medicine, education, and media.

Men are more aware of technical and military AI applications.

Women focus more on social media impact and ethical considerations.

Abstract

An investigation, from a gender perspective, of how students view the ethical implications and societal effects of artificial intelligence is conducted, examining concepts that could have a big influence on how artificial intelligence may be taught in the future. For this, we conducted a survey on a cohort of 230 second year computer science students to reveal their opinions. The results revealed that AI, from the students' perspective, will significantly impact daily life, particularly in areas such as medicine, education, or media. Men are more aware of potential changes in Computer Science, autonomous driving, image and video processing, and chatbot usage, while women mention more the impact on social media. Both men and women perceive potential threats in the same manner, with men more aware of war, AI controlled drones, terrain recognition, and information war. Women seem to have a stronger tendency towards ethical considerations and helping others.