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 www.scholink.org/ojs/index.php/ape Advances in Politics and Economics Vol. 7, No. 3, 2024 Published by SCHOLINK INC. 92 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 www.scholink.org/ojs/index.php/ape Advances in Politics and Economics Vol. 7, No. 3, 2024 Published by SCHOLINK INC. 93 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 www.scholink.org/ojs/index.php/ape Advances in Politics and Economics Vol. 7, No. 3, 2024 Published by SCHOLINK INC. 94 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 Xiang, J. (2023). Research on the Problem of Ethical and Moral Misconduct Among College Students in the Context of Online Public Opinion. Advances in Higher Education, 7(3). Xin, Z. (2024). The Path of Guiding Online Public Opinion of College Students in the Perspective of Emotional Politics. Probe - Media and Communication Studies, 6(3).