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How US Youth Use AI Chatbots: Conversation Patterns from Naturalistic Keystroke Observations
Anne Maheux;
Debra Boeldt;
Samir Akre-Bhide;
Jessica Flannery;
Allison Paige;
Giavanna Villella;
Kaitlyn Burnell;
Eva H Telzer;
Scott Kollins
ABSTRACT
Background:
Youth are increasingly engaging with generative artificial intelligence (genAI) chatbots, yet little is known about the nature of their interactions.
Objective:
This study used naturalistic behavioral observations of keystrokes typed into genAI mobile apps to characterize the topics youth discuss with chatbots.
Methods:
Participants were 3,363 U.S. youth ages ≤9–17 years using the Aura parental monitoring app who engaged in some degree of genAI use. Text input was coded using a large language model with human review.
Results:
Most youth used genAI as a functional tool for problem-solving and information seeking. However, a substantial minority engaged in conversations involving violence, romantic and sexual role-play, and friendship. Younger users showed higher rates of potentially inappropriate content than older teens. Although general-purpose applications (e.g., ChatGPT) were mostly used for task assistance, they were also popular for socioemotional purposes.
Conclusions:
More research is needed examining psychosocial impacts of AI interactions and safety-focused design features.
Citation
Please cite as:
Maheux A, Boeldt D, Akre-Bhide S, Flannery J, Paige A, Villella G, Burnell K, Telzer EH, Kollins S
How US Youth Use AI Chatbots: Conversation Patterns From Naturalistic Keystroke Observations