Perceived support from AI chatbots and loneliness among higher vocational college students: a short-term three-wave study of social interaction anxiety and perceived social support

Key Findings

• — T2 perceived support from AI chatbots predicted lower T3 loneliness
• — T1 and T2 perceived AI support each predicted higher social interaction anxiety at the following wave, and social interaction anxiety predicted later loneliness; T1 AI support indirectly predicted T3 loneliness through T2 social interaction anxiety
• — Perceived human social support at T1 moderated the associations: the compensatory link between AI support and lower loneliness held under high human support and was not significant under low human support

Methodology Notes

Observed-composite cross-lagged panel model; self-report measures; recruitment through class WeChat groups; about 16 weeks of follow-up; single author. The article metadata gives an online date of 25 August 2026 and a publication date of 15 September 2026; the latter is used. Full text read on the Frontiers article page.

Sources