Middle school kids using AI chatbots for friendship are actually lonelier. A new study under peer-review by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is finding students who use AI are more anxious and lonely. The study analyzed data from students at 22 middle schools and found one in five students use AI for emotionally intimate friendships. Those who used AI more often for companionship also reported more loneliness. One of the study’s authors says, “We found that two to four kids in every classroom are now reporting they prefer interaction with a chatbot over a human peer.” Friendships and interactions with peers during adolescence shape young people’s brains long-term and can affect their relationships and life trajectories (like career growth, marital status, and more) into their 40s and beyond, which is part of what makes the research findings concerning. (WSJ)
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