Generative Artificial Intelligence in Digital Communication Ecosystems: Educational, Psychological and Consumer Behavior Perspectives across Emerging Generations

Abstract

The rapid expansion of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) is transforming digital communication ecosystems by redefining how information is produced, interpreted, recommended and consumed in contemporary media environments. In platform-based communication, artificial intelligence (AI) increasingly operates as a cognitive and communicational infrastructure that shapes learning processes, media practices and consumer behavior. This paper examines AI in convergent media environments through a transdisciplinary framework integrating three analytical perspectives: published evidence on student uses of AI in higher education, psychological adaptation to algorithmically curated information environments, and AI-driven consumer behavior within digital media platforms. Methodologically, the study uses a PRISMA-guided systematic literature review combined with qualitative thematic synthesis and conceptual model-building. The review considered peer-reviewed studies indexed in Web of Science and Scopus between 2018 and 2025 and analyzed literature on GenAI, digital education, algorithmic communication, recommendation systems and AI-mediated consumer behavior. No statistical effect-size synthesis was conducted. The synthesis indicates that AI performs three interconnected roles within digital communication ecosystems: learning assistant, cognitive mediator and behavioral influencer. The analysis also discusses generational differences in AI-mediated media interaction, with particular attention to Generation Z, Generation Alpha and the cautious, anticipatory use of the term Generation Beta. The study proposes the AI-Mediated Communication Ecosystem Model as a conceptual framework derived from recurring thematic clusters in the literature. It argues that education for communication professionals should integrate AI literacy, ethical awareness and critical media competencies in order to prepare graduates for increasingly AI-mediated communication environments.