Generative AI Use, Self-Regulated Learning, and Creativity Among Indonesian Design Students

Abstract

Generative artificial intelligence is increasingly embedded in design education, yet whether its use supports or substitutes for the self-directed creative process remains unclear, particularly outside the Chinese samples that dominate prior research. This study examined whether self-regulated learning (SRL) mediates the relationship between generative AI use and creativity among Indonesian design students. Data were collected through an online questionnaire from 120 Indonesian visual communication design students and analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) with bootstrapped confidence intervals and four pre-specified sensitivity analyses. SRL was strongly and consistently associated with creativity (β = .674, f² = .962), and this association remained stable across all robustness checks. AI usage's relationships with SRL, with creativity directly, and with creativity indirectly through SRL were significant in the full sample but lost significance under two independent sensitivity analyses;. However, the sample was adequately powered to detect these effect sizes (post-hoc power ≥ .91); treat the point estimates as preliminary and confirm them in a larger, independent sample before treating them as established. A supplementary analysis found that frequency of AI use, unlike a richer measure of how AI was used, was unrelated to SRL or creativity. SRL is a robust correlate of creativity in AI-assisted design education, while AI use's own contribution requires replication; design pedagogy may be better served by cultivating self-regulation directly than by monitoring AI usage frequency alone. Keywords: generative AI, self-regulated learning, creativity, design education, PLS-SEM.