Bridging Awareness and Application: A Comparative Study of Generative AI Adoption, Training, and Ethical Perceptions among Research Scholars in Indian Universities

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19567026

Prince Buragohain, Manendra Kumar Singh, and Anudha Lepcha (Department of Library and Information Science, Mizoram University, Mizoram)

In today’s digital era there is a sharp rise in the application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools across various fields. The research scholars are also utilizing this technology in their academic activities. It has changed the traditional research methodologies used in academic works. However, several concerns related to plagiarism, presence of potential biases, and the maintenance of academic integrity have emerged. The purpose of this study is to compare the experiences and awareness of Ph.D. scholars of Mizoram and Tezpur Universities related to the usage of GenAI tools in their academic works. For this study, data was collected from 365 respondents with the help of semi-structured online questionnaires. The study tried to find the basic awareness levels, the institutional support systems, knowledge about ethical concerns, and the future perspectives of AI usage. For data collection, a snowball sampling method was adopted. All the necessary ethical safeguards and anonymity were maintained during data collection. The responses were analysed using SPSS. Several significant differences between the two institutions were identified in this study. The research scholars from Mizoram University are more active users and they also reported more benefits from AI tools. It was seen that institutional support and training opportunities were different between the two universities. This study suggests that in order to properly integrate AI technologies in higher educational institutes, there should be adequate training programs and clear institutional policies.