Competitiveness over homework means parents are happy to pay for AI

Competitive anxiety about their child falling behind means parents are more willing to pay for AI tools, finds new research by the University of Cologne.

The study, conducted by Professor Christopher Roth, investigated how strongly the behaviour of other teenagers’ use of AI influence parents’ decisions and found the more young people use AI the higher the willingness to pay.

They surveyed approximately 2,000 parents from the US, Canada, and the UK. All had at least one child between the ages of 13 and 18. The parents were asked how much they would be willing to pay for a three-month premium subscription to an AI tool that their child could use for schoolwork.

Parents were presented with different scenarios regarding AI usage among teenagers: 20, 40, 60, or 80%. For every 10-percentage-point increase in the assumed usage, the willingness to pay rose by an average of $1.38. Between 20% and 80% usage the willingness to pay increased by more than 60%.

For parents, the decisive factor was that their child should not fall behind other teenagers. The study also reveals that information alone about the risks, such as long-term learning losses, cannot combat this.

“Whilst the information about risks did change their attitudes towards AI as support for school-wide rules or bans increased from 44 to 57%, the willingness to pay individually for an AI subscription remained virtually unchanged.

“It highlights that social forces operate with enough strength to sustain adoption of a technology that parents themselves view with ambivalence,” says Christopher Roth, Associate Professor at emlyon business school.

The study ‘Social Dynamics of AI Adoption in Parents’ Educational Decisions’ was done with the participation of the ECONtribute Cluster of Excellence, supported by the Universities of Bonn and Cologne.

It has been published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Science (PNAS).

About the University of Cologne Faculty of Management, Economics, and Social Sciences (WiSo Faculty)

The Faculty of Management, Economics and Social Sciences is characterised by a high degree of interdisciplinary in research and teaching. It has diverse departments of business administration, economics and social sciences in one faculty that address current as well as basic problems and issues of society, true to our mission: Today’s ideas. Tomorrow’s impact.

The faculty has a century of experience in the education of new generations of business professionals, economists, social analysts and political experts. They are committed to further cultivating the unity of research and teaching which enables us both to deliver insights and to educate people.