Investigating the double-edged sword effect of GenAI use on international students’ school adjustment

Against the backdrop of increasingly frequent global educational exchanges, the issue of international students’ school adjustment has attracted much attention. The rise of Generative AI (GenAI) has brought new perspectives to research in this field, but existing studies have insufficiently explored the mechanisms by which it influences international students’ school adjustment. Based on the COR, this study collected 331 valid questionnaires from non-Chinese international students enrolled in three universities in North and South China through a three-stage time-lagged questionnaire survey to explore the double-edged sword effect of GenAI use on international students’ school adjustment. The results show that: on the one hand, GenAI use is associated with better school adjustment by positively predicting international students’ self-efficacy over a one-week lag; on the other hand, it is associated with poorer school adjustment by negatively correlating with their sense of school membership. Furthermore, AI literacy strengthens the positive path through which GenAI use affects school adjustment via self-efficacy, while buffering the negative path through which GenAI use affects school adjustment via school membership. This study not only helps explain the complex mechanism of GenAI use on international students’ school adjustment but also provides practical guidance for international student education management.