"A Study of Chatbot-Mediated Student Engagement in Online Higher Education"

Abstract

With the rapid expansion of online higher-education, maintaining student engagement has become a central challenge. Chatbot-mediated instruction—using AI-driven conversational agents—promises to deliver timely feedback, personalized prompts, and 24×7 support, potentially enhancing cognitive and affective engagement. This study investigates the effect of a custom-built educational chatbot on undergraduate students’ engagement levels in an online learning management system. Using a mixed-methods approach, primary data were collected via structured questionnaires (n = 120) and focus-group interviews. Quantitative analysis (SPSS v26) employed descriptive statistics and Chi-square tests to examine relationships between chatbot interaction frequency and engagement dimensions; qualitative thematic analysis explored student perceptions. Results indicate a significant positive association between regular chatbot use and both behavioral engagement (χ²=12.48, p < .01) and emotional engagement (χ²=10.37, p < .05). Thematic insights highlight increased motivation, reduced isolation, and improved task-completion confidence. Implications for instructional design and AI integration in online pedagogy are discussed.