Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
CURRENT PSYCHOLOGY, cilt.45, sa.1, ss.1-23, 2025 (SSCI, Scopus)
With the widespread adoption of generative AI tools, many university students now regularly utilize these systems for research, content generation, and assignment preparation. Despite growing evidence suggesting that high dependence on AI systems may negatively impact students' levels of critical thinking, the underlying mechanisms of this phenomenon remain underexplored. In this context, the present study aimed to examine the impact of AI tool usage on university students' critical thinking and identify the mediating roles of epistemic laziness and metacognitive weakness in this relationship. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 422 students from three universities in western Türkiye. Participants completed scales measuring AI tool usage, epistemic laziness, metacognitive weakness, and critical thinking. The hypothesized relationships were tested using structural equation modeling, and mediation effects were evaluated with 5,000 bootstrap samples. Findings revealed that AI tool usage significantly and negatively predicted critical thinking (β = -.37, p < .001). AI tool usage was also found to positively predict epistemic laziness (β = .34, p < .001) and metacognitive weakness (β = .40, p < .001). Epistemic laziness and metacognitive weakness were negatively associated with critical thinking (β = -.72 and β = -.22, respectively, p < .001). Moreover, both variables mediated the negative relationship between AI tool usage and critical thinking. The results suggest that the influence of AI tool usage on critical thinking operates predominantly through psychological intermediary mechanisms. These findings highlight the necessity of developing educational interventions—such as activities that promote active inquiry, cross-source verification, and structured self-monitoring—to reduce epistemic laziness and enhance metacognitive awareness in AI-supported learning environments.