Students Are Skipping the Hardest Part of Growing Up (larrycuban.wordpress.com)

Clay Shirky, vice provost at NYU, explores the growing trend of students using AI tools like ChatGPT not just for academic tasks but also to navigate the complexities of social interactions. He contemplates a shift from cognitive offloading—relying on AI to handle tasks like writing assignments—to emotional offloading, where AI helps manage the anxiety of human interaction. This phenomenon reflects a generation increasingly dependent on AI for social cues and confidence, as evidenced by students using generated text to rehearse conversations or enhance their dating app profiles. This reliance poses significant implications for the AI/ML community, as it raises concerns about "social deskilling," where human users may lose essential interpersonal skills, relying instead on AI for validation and guidance. Recent studies indicate that engaging with sycophantic AI can diminish individuals' motivation to repair real-life relationships, highlighting a critical need for education systems to foster genuine social experiences. As society grapples with integrating AI into everyday life, Shirky urges a collective response to mitigate the emotional impact of AI on personal growth and social experience, emphasizing the urgency of addressing these issues before they become entrenched in future generations.