Research Article

Ethical boundaries in the use of ChatGPT in education: Evidence from sports sciences students

Volume: 8 Number: 2026 April 13, 2026
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Ethical boundaries in the use of ChatGPT in education: Evidence from sports sciences students

Abstract

This research aims to examine the relationship between students' awareness of ChatGPT use in education and their level of ethical use of information technologies among students enrolled in sports science faculties. The sample of the study, which was structured using a relational survey model, consisted of 392 students selected through convenience sampling from students enrolled in faculties of Sport Sciences at various universities across Turkiye. As data collection tools, the “Personal Information Form,” the “ChatGPT Usage Scale in Education,” and the “Ethical Use of Information Technologies Scale” were used. The independent samples t-test was used for binary comparisons of scores obtained from scales; one-way analysis of variance and the Tukey HSD test were used for multiple comparisons. The relationship between the scales was analyzed using the Pearson correlation coefficient. When examining the correlations between the sub-dimensions, positive and significant relationships were found between Opportunities and Ethical Awareness and Communication and Respect. The challenges sub-dimension reveals a low level of significant correlation with Ethical Awareness and Cybercrime. Also, significant differences were found in some demographic variables (gender, age, class, department, and use of artificial intelligence). These results indicate that as ethical awareness and communication levels increase, the tendency toward cybercrime decreases, and that the sub-dimensions are significantly correlated to each other. This finding suggests that the use of artificial intelligence tools within an appropriate pedagogical and ethical framework is positively associated with higher levels of ethical awareness.

Keywords

Academic integrity , artificial intelligence in education , ChatGPT use , ethical awareness

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APA
Ceylan Acar, G. (2026). Ethical boundaries in the use of ChatGPT in education: Evidence from sports sciences students. Education Science and Sports, 8(2026), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.70053/esas.1880596