The Role of Artificial Intelligence Use and Personal Competencies in Scientific Writing Skills: Implications for University Guidance and Counseling Services

This study examines how personal competencies shape university students’ scientific writing skills and whether artificial intelligence (AI) use mediates that relationship. Drawing on self-regulated learning theory, self-determination theory, critical literacy theory, and technology acceptance research, an integrated model positioned self-regulated learning, intrinsic motivation, and critical literacy as personal antecedents of AI use, and AI use as a mediator of their effects on scientific writing skills. Using a cross-sectional survey design, self-report data were collected from 615 students at six Indonesian universities through purposive sampling stratified by educational level and gender and analysed with covariance-based structural equation modelling in IBM AMOS 24.0. The model fitted the data well (χ²/df = 2.309, RMSEA = 0.046, CFI = 0.943, TLI = 0.941). Self-regulated learning (β = 0.321), critical literacy (β = 0.311), and intrinsic motivation (β = 0.216) significantly predicted AI use (R² = 0.607) and also directly predicted scientific writing skills, with the full model explaining 92.8% of its variance. Bootstrapped indirect effects (5,000 resamples, 95% bias-corrected confidence intervals) showed that AI use partially mediated all three relationships. Permutation-based multi-group analysis showed no gender moderation, whereas educational level moderated the critical literacy paths. AI amplifies existing personal competencies rather than substituting for them.