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By Rachel Lin
and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporter, with staff writer
About 92 percent of children aged between six and 15 years old use artificial intelligence (AI), and 53 percent of them are happier scrolling, playing games or watching content on computers than socializing, a survey released yesterday showed.
The three-year tracking poll of elementary and junior-high students was conducted by the online educational material vendor Parenting.com.tw, a company spokesperson told a news conference in Taipei.
The figure for AI users includes 20 percent of children who make use of the technology daily or almost daily, the survey said.
Photo: Rachel Lin, Taipei Times
Asked who should be held responsible for a mistake made by AI, half of respondents said they do not know or have never thought about the question.
Nine percent of students used AI to do their homework, including 6 percent of elementary students and 11 percent of junior-high students.
About 36 percent of respondents have not gone out with friends in a month, 29 percent reported having no one who understood them in real life, and 24 percent felt burdened by social interactions.
Children are becoming more isolated, with 23 percent of respondents reporting having no one to rely on, up from 6 percent in the 2024 edition of the poll, it said.
When feeling sad or having a secret to deal with, 34 percent said they would tell their real-life friends, while 5 percent would talk with a chatbot, compared with 4 percent for fathers and 1 percent for teachers, it said.
The poll found that 73 percent of junior-high girls talked to chatbots when feeling depressed, 2.8 times higher than those who would seek help from teachers.
In addition, it found that 54 percent of junior-high girls used AI to deal with interpersonal conflict, higher than the 47 percent who would consult their teachers.
Stress and discontent with school are growing among Taiwanese students compared with three years ago, the survey found.
The share of children and teenagers reporting high stress increased to 47 percent from 36 percent, and those who dislike school increased to 43 percent from 31 percent.
It found that 43 percent of respondents were worried about school exams, 38 percent were concerned about their grades and 25 percent were anxious about not having plans for the future.
Exam angst was occurring at a younger age than before, with 29 percent of fifth graders, 35 percent of sixth graders, 46 percent of seventh graders, 55 percent of eighth graders and 64 percent of ninth graders reporting fears about tests.
