High School Students Turn to ChatGPT and Other AI as Top Confidants for Love and Relationship Advice

DeltaX Inc. (Headquarters: Chiyoda City, Tokyo; Representative: Takeshi Kuroiwa), operator of the tutoring selection service "JukuEra," has conducted a survey on the actual usage of AI and is announcing the key findings.

For high school students, generative AI has become an accessible and familiar tool in daily life. JukuEra Journal conducted an awareness survey targeting 104 high school students regarding their use of generative AI tools such as ChatGPT and their consultation behaviors.

The results show that "generative AI" was selected as the most approachable confidant for issues related to love and interpersonal relationships. In contrast, when it comes to academic paths and school choices, "parents/family" and "school teachers" ranked highest. This suggests that high school students are strategically choosing between AI and humans depending on the nature of their concerns.

This article analyzes how high school students use generative AI, differences in preferred confidants by context, academic applications, and awareness of dependency, based on survey data and open-ended responses.

For more details, please see here.

96.2% of high school students use generative AI, with nearly half using it several times a week

※Single response

When asked whether they have used generative AI such as ChatGPT, 49.0% responded "several times a week or more," 32.7% said "a few times a month," and 14.4% said "tried it a few times." This brings the total of students who have used generative AI at least once to 96.2%. Only 3.8% said they "know about it but haven't used it," and 0% responded "don't know about it."

These results indicate that generative AI is not only widely recognized among high school students but also actively used in daily life by a significant portion.

The following questions were directed only to students who have experience using generative AI.

"Searching and researching" is the top use case for AI, with half using it as a "confidant for personal issues"

※This survey allows multiple responses, so totals may exceed 100%.

The most common purpose for using generative AI was "searching and researching (non-academic)" at 56.0%, followed by "confidant for personal issues or conversation partner" at 50.0%.

"Completing school homework or assignments" and "preparing for regular school exams" each accounted for 31.0%. It appears that for high school students, generative AI is used not only to improve study efficiency but also as an easy-to-talk-to conversational partner.

In open-ended responses, many students noted that AI helped them as a conversation partner or for emotional clarity.

"It became someone I could casually chat with." (Male, Grade 12, Yamaguchi Prefecture)

"When I was troubled, it listened to me and made me feel better." (Female, Grade 10, Tokyo)

"By consulting AI, I received the words and advice I wished someone would say to me, which helped stabilize my mental state." (Female, Grade 10, Tochigi Prefecture)

Choosing confidants based on the topic: AI for "love and relationships," humans for "academic paths"

What kinds of concerns do high school students discuss with AI?

AI ranks first as confidant for love and interpersonal relationship issues

※This survey allows multiple responses, so totals may exceed 100%.

When asked who they consult about "love and interpersonal relationship issues," among students who consult someone, the most selected confidant was "generative AI" at 44.2%. This was followed by "friends or seniors" at 26.0% and "search engines" at 14.3%.

The reason AI is most often chosen for private matters like love and relationships may lie in its unique "psychological safety." Human consultations often come with anxieties such as "I might be judged" or "it might become gossip." However, AI, which lacks emotions or biases, eliminates such concerns. High school students likely feel safe confiding in AI as a "secure listener" they can freely talk to anytime, anywhere, especially about complex adolescent emotions or vague feelings they can't yet articulate.

For "academic and career paths," parents and teachers rank highest as confidants

※This survey allows multiple responses, so totals may exceed 100%.

On the other hand, when asked about confidants for "academic paths or school choices," among the 84 students who consult someone (excluding those who consult no one), 34.5% chose "parents/family" as their confidant, followed by "school teachers" at 31.0%. The percentage of students who chose "generative AI" as a confidant in this category was only 13.1%.

For practical concerns involving future decisions and life paths, many high school students prefer to consult experienced adults or those who know them well. Perhaps adults are increasingly expected to play a "co-pilot" role—offering not just knowledge or correct answers, but advice grounded in real-life experience and the reassurance of deeply understanding the student's personality.

Choosing confidants based on the type of concern

These results indicate that high school students differentiate their choice of confidant based on the type of concern. For internal, emotional issues like love and relationships, they turn to AI. For practical, real-world concerns like academic paths, they rely on experienced adults such as parents and teachers.

This thoughtful selection of confidants—understanding the strengths of both AI and humans—can be seen as a distinctive trait of the digital native generation.

Is "copying answers" the minority? A trend toward seeking detailed explanations in learning

※This survey allows multiple responses, so totals may exceed 100%.

Regarding specific academic uses, the most common was "asking for explanations or solutions to problems I don't understand" at 56.0%. This was followed by "using it as a replacement for search tools for class research" at 41.0%, and "summarizing long texts or translating foreign languages" at 33.0%.

21.0% of respondents said they use AI to "get homework answers immediately without thinking for themselves." However, overall, more students use AI as a "learning aid (explanation)" rather than merely to "obtain answers."

In open-ended responses, many highlighted the benefit of receiving more detailed explanations.

"When solving math problems, I didn't even understand the textbook's explanation, so I asked AI to explain the explanation." (Female, Grade 10, Tokyo)

"Before a test, I couldn't remember how to solve a problem and had no one to ask, so I consulted AI and was able to solve it during the test." (Female, Grade 11, Saga Prefecture)

58.0% of high school students feel their academic ability has improved with generative AI

※Single response

When asked whether they feel their academic ability has improved through using generative AI, 17.0% responded "yes," and 41.0% said "somewhat." Combined, 58.0% reported feeling an improvement in academic performance.

On the other hand, 34.0% said "not much change," and the combined percentage for "slightly declined" and "declined" was 8.0%. This suggests that using generative AI does not automatically improve academic performance—results depend on how it is used.

In open-ended responses, some students shared proactive learning strategies, such as using AI for problem creation and study planning.

"I had AI generate practice problems, took a mock test, and my score improved compared to before." (Male, Grade 10, Yamagata Prefecture)

"When I didn't know where to start, I had AI create a daily schedule for me." (Female, Grade 11, Aichi Prefecture)