Quill & Bytes: A Qualitative Analysis on the Perceived Impacts of AI-Based Paraphrasing Tools in Academic Writing and Performance toward Higher Education Students

AI-based paraphrasing tools provide essential support for students to overcome the challenges they experience in academic writing. These tools boast technical features to its users to effectively restructure concepts and ideas. The current study is focused on determining the perspective of students in using AI-based paraphrasing tools in academic writing. Based on this, this qualitative descriptive study sought to realize the following objectives: (1) How students perceive the impact of AI-based paraphrasing tools on the quality and originality of their academic writing, and (2) The factors influencing students’ decisions to adopt or refrain from using AI-based paraphrasing tools in their academic writing. The study administered a structured interview to five undergraduate students through thematic analysis it was able to uncover the five reoccurring themes towards the impact of AI-based paraphrasing tools which can be simplified as follows: time-saving tool; quality of outputs; originality of works; academic integrity; and students’ academic performance. Furthermore, five reoccurring factors that influence the students’ decisions, the factors being: determining factors; preferred discipline; role of academic guidelines and policies; accuracy and trustworthiness; and peer influence. These findings yield a profound insight and understanding of the experiences of students in using AI-based paraphrasing in academic writing.