ChatGPT as an Emotional Venting Tool: Its Relationship with Emotional Self-Regulation Among Filipino Late Adolescents

This study investigated how late adolescents in the Philippines use ChatGPT to express themselves and control their own emotions. Despite the growing use of generative AI among adolescents, limited empirical evidence exists regarding the use of ChatGPT as a tool for emotional venting and its relationship with emotional self-regulation among Filipino late adolescents. It focuses on four factors: ChatGPT usage frequency, perceived emotional safety, reported utility, and level of involvement. It also assessed emotional self-regulation using criteria such as awareness, clarity, and control. It also looked into the relationship between ChatGPT use and emotional self-regulation, specifically whether aspects of ChatGPT use are highly predictive of emotional self-regulation. The study employed a quantitative, cross-sectional, descriptive-correlational design involving 135 late adolescent respondents aged 17 to 19 years from a private university in Baguio City. Data were collected using the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ) and the researcher-developed ChatGPT-as-Diary Use Scale (CDUS). Statistical analyses included mean, standard deviation, Pearson product-moment correlation, and multiple regression. Results indicated low use of ChatGPT for emotional venting (M = 2.45, SD = 1.13), while perceived emotional safety (M = 2.90, SD = 1.18), perceived usefulness (M = 2.73, SD = 1.12), and engagement (M = 2.49, SD = 1.10) were rated at moderate levels. Respondents demonstrated high levels of emotional self-regulation, particularly in cognitive reappraisal (M = 3.84, SD = 0.70) and expressive suppression (M = 3.57, SD = 0.73). Pearson correlation analysis revealed a weak but statistically significant positive relationship between ChatGPT use and emotional self-regulation (r = .25, p = .003). However, multiple regression analysis showed that the dimensions of ChatGPT use did not significantly predict emotional self-regulation (R² = .067, F(4,129) = 2.31, p = .061). These results highlighted that although ChatGPT may serve as a supplementary tool for emotional expression, its impact on emotional self-regulation among Filipino late adolescents, aged 17-19, is minimal.