IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/teinso/v76y2024ics0160791x23002476.html

Public attitudes and sentiments toward ChatGPT in China: A text mining analysis based on social media

Author

Listed:
  • Lian, Ying
  • Tang, Huiting
  • Xiang, Mengting
  • Dong, Xuefan

Abstract

ChatGPT, an innovative artificial intelligence language model, is attracted significant attention around the world, sparking both enthusiasm and controversy, but identifying its societal impact and addressing its potential concerns necessitate an understanding of the prevailing public's attitudes toward the tool. In this study, we leverage text mining techniques to analyze the sentiments and themes prevalent among Chinese social media discussions of ChatGPT. In total, 96,435 comment data and 55,186 repost data were used, and the results show that public discussions mainly focused on ChatGPT's technical support, AI-related effectiveness, impact on human work, and effects on education and technology. Concerns were related to disinformation risks, technological unemployment, and the human–computer relationship. In addition, we found that social media played a prominent role in information dissemination, while official media and government units demonstrated a limited influence. The insights obtained through this study can inform policymakers, industry stakeholders, and the public of the public's prevailing attitude toward AI technologies, and they can facilitate informed decision-making.

Suggested Citation

  • Lian, Ying & Tang, Huiting & Xiang, Mengting & Dong, Xuefan, 2024. "Public attitudes and sentiments toward ChatGPT in China: A text mining analysis based on social media," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:teinso:v:76:y:2024:i:c:s0160791x23002476
    DOI: 10.1016/j.techsoc.2023.102442
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160791X23002476
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.techsoc.2023.102442?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Hua Bai & Guang Yu, 2016. "A Weibo-based approach to disaster informatics: incidents monitor in post-disaster situation via Weibo text negative sentiment analysis," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 83(2), pages 1177-1196, September.
    2. Pang, Hua & Liu, Jun & Lu, Jiahui, 2022. "Tackling fake news in socially mediated public spheres: A comparison of Weibo and WeChat," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    3. Agarwal, Puneet & Aziz, Ridwan Al & Zhuang, Jun, 2022. "Interplay of rumor propagation and clarification on social media during crisis events - A game-theoretic approach," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 298(2), pages 714-733.
    4. Mahdi Hajiabadi & Hamed Vahdat-Nejad & Hamideh Hajiabadi, 2023. "COVID-19 and tourism: extracting public attitudes," Current Issues in Tourism, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 26(4), pages 547-553, February.
    5. Wahyono, Budi & Rapih, Subroto & Boungou, Whelsy, 2023. "Unleashing the wordsmith: Analysing the stock market reactions to the launch of ChatGPT in the US Education sector," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 58(PC).
    6. Eugène Loos & Johanna Gröpler & Marie-Louise Sophie Goudeau, 2023. "Using ChatGPT in Education: Human Reflection on ChatGPT’s Self-Reflection," Societies, MDPI, vol. 13(8), pages 1-18, August.
    7. Dong, Xuefan & Lian, Ying, 2021. "A review of social media-based public opinion analyses: Challenges and recommendations," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    8. Holly Else, 2023. "Abstracts written by ChatGPT fool scientists," Nature, Nature, vol. 613(7944), pages 423-423, January.
    9. Xing, Yunfei & Wang, Xiwei & Qiu, Chengcheng & Li, Yueqi & He, Wu, 2022. "Research on opinion polarization by big data analytics capabilities in online social networks," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    10. Wu, Zezhou & He, Qiufeng & Li, Jiarun & Bi, Guoqiang & Antwi-Afari, Maxwell Fordjour, 2023. "Public attitudes and sentiments towards new energy vehicles in China: A text mining approach," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 178(C).
    11. Jason Hung & Jackson Chen, 2023. "The Benefits, Risks and Regulation of Using ChatGPT in Chinese Academia: A Content Analysis," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-15, June.
    12. Chaturvedi, Rijul & Verma, Sanjeev & Das, Ronnie & Dwivedi, Yogesh K., 2023. "Social companionship with artificial intelligence: Recent trends and future avenues," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 193(C).
    13. Perez-Castro, A. & Martínez-Torres, M.R. & Toral, S.L., 2023. "Efficiency of automatic text generators for online review content generation," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).
    14. Qianqian, Li & Yijun, Liu, 2020. "The China-Pakistan economic corridor: The Pakistani media attitudes perspective," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    15. Yang, Zaoli & Wu, Qingyang & Venkatachalam, K. & Li, Yuchen & Xu, Bing & Trojovský, Pavel, 2022. "Topic identification and sentiment trends in Weibo and WeChat content related to intellectual property in China," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    16. Lee, Hyejun & Lee, Dong Il & Kim, Taeho & Lee, Juhyun, 2013. "The moderating role of socio-semantic networks on online buzz diffusion," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 66(9), pages 1367-1374.
    17. Jianping Zhu & Futian Weng & Muni Zhuang & Xin Lu & Xu Tan & Songjie Lin & Ruoyi Zhang, 2022. "Revealing Public Opinion towards the COVID-19 Vaccine with Weibo Data in China: BertFDA-Based Model," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(20), pages 1-26, October.
    18. Yanlong Guo & Lan Zu & Denghang Chen & Han Zhang, 2023. "A Study of Public Attitudes toward Shanghai’s Image under the Influence of COVID-19: Evidence from Comments on Sina Weibo," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(3), pages 1-27, January.
    19. Hou, Shengjie & Zhang, Xiang & Yi, Biyi & Tang, Yi, 2022. "Public attitudes on open source communities in China: A text mining analysis," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Pham, Hong Chuong & Duong, Cong Doanh & Nguyen, Giang Khanh Huyen, 2024. "What drives tourists’ continuance intention to use ChatGPT for travel services? A stimulus-organism-response perspective," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    2. Yating Wen & Xiaodong Zhao & Xingguo Li & Yuqi Zang, 2025. "Attitude Mining Toward Generative Artificial Intelligence in Education: The Challenges and Responses for Sustainable Development in Education," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(3), pages 1-26, January.
    3. Wu, Qinqin & Zhuang, Qinqin & Liu, Yitong & Han, Longyan, 2024. "Technology shock of ChatGPT, social attention and firm value: Evidence from China," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    4. Rehman, Anis ur & Behera, Rajat Kumar & Islam, Md. Saiful & Abbasi, Faraz Ahmad & Imtiaz, Asma, 2024. "Assessing the usage of ChatGPT on life satisfaction among higher education students: The moderating role of subjective health," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    5. Juana Beatriz Vargas Bernuy & Marco A. Nolasco-Mamani & Norma C. Velásquez Rodríguez & Renza L. Gambetta Quelopana & Ana N. Martinez Valdivia & Sam M. Espinoza Vidaurre, 2025. "Relative Advantage and Compatibility as Drivers of ChatGPT Adoption in Latin American Higher Education: A PLS SEM Study Towards Sustainable Digital Education," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(18), pages 1-26, September.
    6. Pang, Hua & Ruan, Yang, 2024. "Disentangling composite influences of social connectivity and system interactivity on continuance intention in mobile short video applications: The pivotal moderation of user-perceived benefits," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    7. Li, Sihong & Chen, Jinglong, 2024. "Virtual human on social media: Text mining and sentiment analysis," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Li, Sihong & Chen, Jinglong, 2024. "Virtual human on social media: Text mining and sentiment analysis," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    2. Guangce Ruan & Lei Xia & Xin Wen & Yinuo Dong, 2025. "RETRACTED ARTICLE: Exploring the Dynamic Interplay of User Characteristics and Topic Influence on Weibo: A Comprehensive Analysis," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 16(1), pages 3030-3057, March.
    3. Wen Zhang & Qiang Wang & Jian Li & Zhenzhong Ma & Gokul Bhandari & Rui Peng, 2023. "What makes deceptive online reviews? A linguistic analysis perspective," Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-14, December.
    4. Chen, Long & Huang, Jiahui & Jing, Peng & Wang, Bichen & Yu, Xiaozhou & Zha, Ye & Jiang, Chengxi, 2023. "Changing or unchanging Chinese attitudes toward ride-hailing? A social media analytics perspective from 2018 to 2021," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 178(C).
    5. Jain, Lokesh, 2022. "An entropy-based method to control COVID-19 rumors in online social networks using opinion leaders," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    6. Camilleri, Mark Anthony & Kozak, Metin, 2022. "Interactive engagement through travel and tourism social media groups: A social facilitation theory perspective," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    7. Polyzos, Efstathios & Fotiadis, Anestis & Huan, Tzung-Cheng, 2023. "From Heroes to Scoundrels: Exploring the effects of online campaigns celebrating frontline workers on COVID-19 outcomes," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    8. Cano-Marin, Enrique & Mora-Cantallops, Marçal & Sánchez-Alonso, Salvador, 2023. "Twitter as a predictive system: A systematic literature review," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    9. Edisa Lozić & Benjamin Štular, 2023. "Fluent but Not Factual: A Comparative Analysis of ChatGPT and Other AI Chatbots’ Proficiency and Originality in Scientific Writing for Humanities," Future Internet, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-26, October.
    10. Zhijie Sasha Dong & Lingyu Meng & Lauren Christenson & Lawrence Fulton, 2021. "Social media information sharing for natural disaster response," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 107(3), pages 2077-2104, July.
    11. Arpan Kumar Kar & P. S. Varsha & Shivakami Rajan, 2023. "Unravelling the Impact of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI) in Industrial Applications: A Review of Scientific and Grey Literature," Global Journal of Flexible Systems Management, Springer;Global Institute of Flexible Systems Management, vol. 24(4), pages 659-689, December.
    12. Hai-Bing Xiao & Feng Hu & You-Feng Zhao & Yu-Rong Song, 2025. "Constrained Optimal Control of Information Diffusion in Online Social Hypernetworks," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 13(17), pages 1-30, August.
    13. Wu, Jiajun & Liu, Hui & Ren, Xiaolei & Nie, Shida & Qin, Yechen & Han, Lijin, 2025. "A multi-objective optimization approach for regenerative braking control in electric vehicles using MPE-SAC algorithm," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 318(C).
    14. Hoffmann, Stefan & Lasarov, Wassili & Dwivedi, Yogesh K., 2024. "AI-empowered scale development: Testing the potential of ChatGPT," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 205(C).
    15. Fu, Yuan & Wu, Junlin & Barbrook-Johnson, Pete & Wen, Peihan, 2025. "Evaluating social perceptions and diffusion networks of green travel: A case of China with Weibo," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 169(C), pages 9-25.
    16. Wei, Jinpeng & Xu, Xuanhua & Qu, Shaojian & Wang, Qiuhan, 2025. "Consensus modeling for maximum expert with quadratic cost under various uncertain contexts: A data-driven robust approach," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 323(1), pages 192-207.
    17. Wang Xian & Chen Guomin & Varsha Arya & Kwok Tai Chui, 2024. "Examining the Influence of AI Chatbots on Semantic Web-Based Global Information Management in Various Industries," International Journal on Semantic Web and Information Systems (IJSWIS), IGI Global Scientific Publishing, vol. 20(1), pages 1-14, January.
    18. Alin ZAMFIROIU & Denisa VASILE & Daniel SAVU, 2023. "ChatGPT – A Systematic Review of Published Research Papers," Informatica Economica, Academy of Economic Studies - Bucharest, Romania, vol. 27(1), pages 5-16.
    19. Xing, Yunfei & Zhang, Justin Zuopeng & Teng, Guangqing & Zhou, Xiaotang, 2024. "Voices in the digital storm: Unraveling online polarization with ChatGPT," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    20. Raghu Raman & Hiran H Lathabai & Santanu Mandal & Payel Das & Tavleen Kaur & Prema Nedungadi, 2024. "ChatGPT: Literate or intelligent about UN sustainable development goals?," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 19(4), pages 1-27, April.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:teinso:v:76:y:2024:i:c:s0160791x23002476. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/technology-in-society .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.