


































Advances in Politics and Economics
ISSN 2576-1382 (Print) ISSN 2576-1390 (Online)

Vol. 7, No. 3, 2024
www.scholink.org/ojs/index.php/ape

91

Original Paper

Research on the Influence of Online Public Opinion on College

Students' Values in the Context of Artificial Intelligence
Hang Yu1

1 Xi’an FanYi University, School of Marxism , Shaanxi, Xi’an, China

Received: October 29, 2024 Accepted: November 11, 2024 Online Published: November 29, 2024

doi:10.22158/ape.v7n3p91 URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.22158/ape.v7n3p91

Abstract

The advent of generative artificial intelligence, exemplified by ChatGPT, has infused new vitality into

the ideological and political education of college students through its formidable generative

capabilities. However, it has also imparted impacts on their values across multiple dimensions. In the

backdrop of the widespread adoption of generative AI, college students, being digital natives, have

emerged as key players and disseminators in online public opinion. Characterized by their active minds

and susceptibility to diverse ideological trends, they may face disruptions in their value cognition or, in

extreme cases, deviations in their behavioral norms when confronted with sudden public events that

evolve amidst shifting online public opinion. Hence, amidst the relentless advancement of AI, it is

crucial to assist college students in mitigating the adverse effects of online public opinion stemming

from such events on their values.

Keywords

Artificial Intelligence, College Students’ Values, Online Public Opinion

According to the "54th China Statistical Report on Internet Development" released by the China

Internet Network Information Center, as of June 2024, China boasts an internet user population of 1.1

billion. Among these users, those aged between 10 and 30 constitute a significant segment, accounting

for 27.1% of the total, indicating that college students are a major group within the online audience.

The values of young people will, to a certain extent, shape the future direction of societal values. As

key witnesses to the rapid development of generative artificial intelligence, contemporary college

students are the primary group that can keenly perceive the changes in life and society brought about

by AI. In the context of AI, college students are exposed to the immense impact of the Internet's

multiculturalism, and they have become an important force in shaping and disseminating online public

opinion. Online public opinion refers to the diverse views and opinions expressed by different groups



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on the internet regarding social hot-button issues. The advent of mobile internet information has greatly

facilitated information sharing, but at the same time, online public opinion continues to emerge,

exerting both positive and negative influences on the formation of college students' values. Therefore,

in-depth research is necessary to better equip college students with the ability to respond rationally to

the negative impacts of online public opinion on their values.

1. The Positive Impact of Online Public Opinion on the Values of College Students

Online public opinion breaks through the limitations of time and space, enabling college students to

access various information and understand different viewpoints and perspectives anytime, anywhere.

This not only helps broaden their horizons but also enhances their ability to distinguish right from

wrong and truth from falsehood. Correct online public opinion can guide college students to conduct

rational analysis and judgment of events, avoiding blind following or emotional responses. Over the

long term, this contributes to the formation of correct values among college students. Online public

opinion often involves social hotspots and focal issues. In the process of participating in discussions

and paying attention to these issues, college students can gradually recognize their social

responsibilities, enhance their sense of social responsibility and mission, and thus improve their ability

to make value judgments. The college student group has long been in an "ivory tower"-like campus

environment, and their values are in a developmental stage from childhood to maturity. The

dissemination characteristics of online public opinion have enabled college students to break through

the constraints of traditional media. Both from the perspective of the diversity of public opinion content

and the level of expression forms of public opinion dissemination, it has greatly expanded college

students' own participation and their cognitive space for values. By paying attention to public opinion

and engaging in extensive discussions and exchanges across the entire network around public opinion,

it can effectively improve the breadth and depth of college students' understanding and analysis of

issues, enhancing their ability to think dialectically and make value judgments.

2. The Negative Impact of Online Public Opinion on the Values of College Students

A university is a small society. Most college students begin their truly independent lives after entering

university, and the university stage is also a crucial period for shaping the values of college students.

During this period, college students' subjective consciousness begins to strengthen. However, if their

subjective consciousness is too strong, it will cause some college students to unconsciously oppose

mainstream social values. In order to be unique, they pursue and adore some niche cultures and may

even use negative values to demonstrate their uniqueness. For example, following popular cultures

such as "depression" and "Buddhist-like indifference," "lying flat" and "refined egoists" have become

influential phenomena in current campus culture. In the context of increasingly abundant Internet

information, college students are inherently curious, eager to express themselves, have active minds,

and have relatively shallow social experiences, lacking comprehensive and profound understanding and



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analysis of certain social issues. In the face of sudden public event-related online public opinion,

college students express their opinions through various online platforms, but often, amid unverified

information, various guesses and rumors flood in. This will easily confuse college students whose

values are not yet fully mature in their ideological cognition, and it will be difficult for them to make

correct cognitions and identifications in a short time under the repeated coverage of public opinion

information, resulting in confusion in their value cognition. In addition, some unethical media and

notorious internet celebrities, out of their own interests, often control the direction of public opinion

through improper means, induce audience groups to achieve their goals, and maliciously alter the

causes, processes, and the languages and behaviors of the parties involved in events by leveraging

artificial intelligence technology and other means. They conduct false or dismemberment dissemination

and reporting of hot events, which can easily have a negative impact on the values of college students.

3. Research on Countermeasures for the Impact of Online Public Opinion on College Students'

Values

In the era of open internet, generative artificial intelligence, represented by ChatGPT, has exerted

impacts on college students' values from various dimensions due to its powerful "generative"

capabilities. College students' values are in the stage of formation, and the impact of online public

opinion on their values is immeasurable due to its complexity .How to adapt to the online public

opinion ecosystem derived in the context of artificial intelligence, and how to cultivate college students

to develop correct values in the guidance of online public opinion are practical topics that must be paid

attention to in the field of ideological and political education in colleges and universities today.

Universities should strengthen the education of internet literacy for college students, encompassing

skills in acquiring, analyzing, and evaluating online information, as well as awareness of cybersecurity

and privacy protection. This will assist college students in better addressing the challenges posed by

online public opinion. Universities should encourage college students to actively engage in discussions

within online public opinion while maintaining a rational and objective stance. At the same time, they

should cultivate their critical thinking skills, enabling them to think and judge independently and avoid

blindly following trends. During periods of rapid dissemination of online public opinion, college

students are in urgent need of authoritative, official, and transparent information. Any delay in

addressing this need will only deepen their conjectures and misunderstandings about public events, and

inflammatory remarks and ideologies infused with Western political colors may exploit this

vulnerability, influencing their ability to judge values. At this juncture, universities need to proactively

lead online public opinion, actively promote mainstream ideologies, and promptly mitigate the negative

impacts of online public opinion on college students' values.

Universities should actively leverage the guiding role of ideological and political education on the

internet, proactively occupy major online platforms, and publish scientific and authoritative official

explanations through multiple channels and in diverse formats. Strengthening college students' correct



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political identity and helping them discern the essence of various erroneous social trends are essential.

In the process of teaching and management, ideological and political educators in universities should

introduce cases of online public opinion related to sudden public events that college students focus on

into the classroom, guiding students to analyze the true intentions behind these events, cultivating their

critical thinking skills, enabling them to think independently, and discern the authenticity and reliability

of online information, thereby avoiding blindly following trends or spreading false information.

Centered on hot events in online public opinion, organize students to conduct classroom discussions,

encouraging them to analyze issues from different perspectives and fostering diverse perspectives and

an inclusive mindset. Through case analysis, role-playing, and other methods, students can simulate the

analysis of online public opinion events, enhancing their abilities to analyze public opinion and their

coping skills.

4. Conclusion

The influence of online public opinion on the values of college students is dual, presenting both

positive and negative aspects. Therefore, we need to take effective measures to guide college students

in correctly responding to online public opinion and establishing correct values. By strengthening

education on internet literacy, guiding rational discussions, advocating a positive and healthy internet

culture, and other measures, we can help college students become new-era talents capable of

shouldering the great mission of national rejuvenation.

Reference

Chen, F. J., Qin, Z. X., Liu, E. B. et al. (2024). An Empirical Study on the Causes of College Students'

Participation in Internet Public Opinion and Its Countermeasures—Based on Data from Colleges

and Universities in Harbin. Media and Communication Research, 5(1).

https://doi.org/10.23977/mediacr.2024.050103

Wang, L. (2020). Study on the Strategies of Ideological and Political Education for College Students in

the New Era from the Perspective of Network Public Opinion. Advances in Higher Education,

4(9). https://doi.org/10.18686/ahe.v4i9.2687

Weng, S. T. (2023). Implications of Sudden Online Public Opinion Incidents for Student Management

in Universities. Applied & Educational Psychology, 4(4).

https://doi.org/10.23977/appep.2023.040404

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