ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE USAGE AND ACADEMIC ENGAGEMENT AMONG MASS COMMUNICATION LECTURERS IN PRIVATE UNIVERSITIES IN ONDO STATE, NIGERIA

Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly altering the ways academic work is conceived, organised and performed, bringing teaching, research and scholarly communication into closer engagement with intelligent digital technologies. Yet, evidence on how these technologies are being used by Mass Communication lecturers in Nigerian universities remains limited. This study examined AI usage and academic engagement among Mass Communication lecturers in private universities in Ondo State, Nigeria. A descriptive survey design was adopted, with data collected from 33 lecturers across four private universities using a structured questionnaire. Data were analysed using frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation. The results showed a high extent of AI usage (M = 3.02) and a high level of academic engagement (M = 3.42). Lecturers reported positive perceived contributions of AI to teaching activities (M = 3.28), particularly lesson preparation and the quality and speed of feedback. AI was also perceived to contribute positively to research engagement (M = 3.22), especially in proofreading and editing research manuscripts and improving academic writing. In addition, respondents identified infrastructural, technical, institutional, financial and ethical conditions as relevant to AI utilisation (M = 2.88), with internet access recording the highest mean. The study concludes that AI constitutes a meaningful component of academic practice among the lecturers studied, particularly in supporting specific teaching and research tasks. It recommends stronger institutional support, continuous AI capacity building, improved digital infrastructure and clear guidelines for responsible AI use in higher education.