Technical and Humanities Students’ Perspectives on the Development and Sustainability of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Vasile Gherheș and Ciprian Obrad
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Vasile Gherheș: Department of Communication and Foreign Languages, Politehnica University of Timișoara, 300006 Timișoara, Romania
Ciprian Obrad: Department of Sociology, West University of Timișoara, 300223 Timișoara, Romania

Sustainability, 2018, vol. 10, issue 9, 1-16

Abstract: This study investigates how the development of artificial intelligence (AI) is perceived by the students enrolled in technical and humanistic specializations at two universities in Timisoara. It has an emphasis on identifying their attitudes towards the phenomenon, on the connotations associated with it, and on the possible impact of artificial intelligence on certain areas of the social life. Moreover, the present study reveals the students’ perceptions on the sustainability of these changes and developments, and therefore aims to reduce the possible negative impact on consumers, and at anticipate the changes that AI will produce in the future. In order to collect the data, the authors have used a quantitative research method. A questionnaire-based sociological survey was completed by 928 students, with a representation error of only ±3%. The analysis has shown that a great number of respondents have a positive attitude towards the emergence of AI, who believe it will influence society for the better. The results have also underscored underlying differences based on the respondents’ type of specialization (humanistic or technical), and their gender.

Keywords: artificial intelligence; sustainable development; technology; perceptions (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (9)

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