Generative Artificial Intelligence Use, Perceived Usefulness, Perceived Ease of Use, and Ethical Awareness Among College Students

Abstract

Various forms of generative AI (GenAI) continue to permeate students' academic lives, but whether they prove valuable in the long run depends on how helpful students find these tools and on their responsible use. This research aimed to investigate the extent to which college students are incorporating GenAI into their academic work, as well as their perceived usefulness, ease of use, and ethical awareness regarding responsible academic use. Guided by the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), which explains how users come to accept and adopt a technology, the study employed a descriptive–correlational design with 169 college students at a higher education institution in the Philippines during academic year 2025–2026. It explores six academic activities and ethical awareness, and uses three items each to assess perceived usefulness (PU) and perceived ease of use (PEOU). Overall, students on average occasionally used GenAI (M = 2.64, SD = 0.72). They were also generally in agreement regarding the utility (M = 2.76, SD = 0.77) and ease of use (M = 2.85, SD = 0.73), as well as having relatively positive ethical awareness of GenAI (M = 3.26, SD = 0.73). The correlational relationship between perceived usefulness and frequency of use was strongly positive (r = 0.742, p < .001) and moderately correlated with perceived ease of use (r = 0.581, p < .001). The association with ethical awareness was weaker but still significant (r = 0.315, p <. 001). These findings suggest that students tend to view GenAI positively and use it mainly as an academic support tool, while ethical awareness should be strengthened through explicit guidance rather than assumed to develop simply through greater exposure to technology.