Over Half of Japanese Parents Concerned About Children Using ChatGPT

CyberOwl, which operates Terakoya Plus, a website providing information for cram schools and lessons, ran a nationwide survey through its site asking 508 parents of students from the third year of elementary school to the final year of high school about their children’s use of ChatGPT. While a day never seems to pass now without mention of ChatGPT on television or in newspapers, only 30.3% of parents in the survey said they had used it themselves. Asked about how they had used the AI chatbot, the three most common answers were “testing it out,” “had it create some sentences,” and “did a small amount of research.”

On the other hand, of the roughly 70% who said they had not used ChatGPT, 30.3% gave the reason that they “don’t feel the need” and 24.1% answered that they “don’t know how to use it.” A further 17.2% responded that they have “never heard of it.”

Parents were also asked whether their children knew about ChatGPT, to which 39.7% said yes, 32.9% said no, and 27.4% did not know. Of those whose children did use ChatGPT, some respondents said they were using it partly like a game, such as one parent of a second-year high schooler who was “asking it contrary questions that it can’t answer and then adding in witty responses.” Others though answered that their children were getting help with their studies, like the parent of a first year high schooler who “was having difficulty writing an essay for homework, so used it to get advice.”

A total of 64.2% of parents stated that they were either “concerned” or “somewhat concerned” when it came to their children using ChatGPT. A significant difference could be seen though between the 44.1% of parents who had used the chatbot and held concerns and 72.9% of non-users with the same misgivings.

Among the concerns parents listed, many were worried that their children would have a “decline in cognitive skills” and “will believe incorrect information.”

(Translated from Japanese. Banner photo © Pixta.)