AI and Chat GPT
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Chat GPT
Information and ideas generated by artificial intelligence, including Chat GPT, must be cited. AI and Chat GPT are not included in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (the Publication Manual), but the American Psychological Association (APA) has released guidelines for citing these types of sources. The information here comes from “How to cite Chat GPT”, written by Timothy McAdoo for the APA Style Blog in April 2023. A link to the full text can be found at the end of this section.
Limitations of Chat GPT
Like any technology, AI and Chat GPT have limitations, and using them for research can create challenges and present risks for researchers, including students. Many articles have been written on this topic, and below are the most common risks and limitations mentioned. A list of sources can be found at the end of this section.
- Biased Information and Misinformation: Chat GPT and other AI chat programs are known for misinformation, or false information, and for providing biased information. This happens because of the way that these programs pull information together and the sources that they draw on to get their information.
- Incorrect Referencing: Chat GPT and other AI chat programs compile their answers to prompts based on numerous resources, and it does not tell users where the information is from. In other words, Chat GPT and AI do not cite their sources. Because of this, we cannot verify its sources or properly and completely cite those sources, and we cannot be sure that the information the program is using is being used in compliance with copyright laws. Even if you ask for “real” or “peer-reviewed” sources, the answer will still not contain all the data on which Chat GPT bases its answer.
- Incorrect Citations: Chat GPT and AI can create lists of citations that look accurate, and they may follow APA Style guidelines correctly. However, some of the resources being cited may not actually exist! If you choose to use Chat GPT or AI to create a list of sources, it is very important to use other tools, like Catalyst, to make sure that these sources really exist. It is also very important to look at the source itself, to make sure it provides the information required for the essay or assignment.
The sources below provide more information about the risks and limitations of Chat GPT and AI. If you choose to use Chat GPT and AI for research, it is very important to keep these risks and limitations in mind.
Quoting or Reproducing Text Created by Chat GPT
If Chat GPT or other AI tools were used for research, brainstorming ideas, generating lists of citations, or for any other purpose in the creation of an essay or assignment, it must be cited.
One way to cite Chat GPT or other AI tools is to describe how the tool was used in either an introduction or a methods section. In the text or body of the essay or assignment, provide the prompt used – what you typed into Chat GPT – followed by any relevant portion of the text generated in response.
It is important to note that the results of a Chat GPT session are not retrievable. McAdoo writes that, “although non-retrievable data or quotations are usually cited as personal communications, with Chat GPT-generated text there is no person communicating. Quoting Chat GPT’s text from a chat session is therefore more like sharing an algorithm’s output; thus, credit the author of the algorithm with a reference list entry and the corresponding in-text citation” (2023).
Example: In-Text Citation
When prompted with, “What are some ethical considerations when conducting research involving human participants?”, the Chat GPT-generated text indicated that . . . (OpenAI, 2023).
Example: Reference List Entry
Open AI. (2023). Chat GPT (Mar 14 version) [Large language model].
https://chat.openai.com/chat
.
Remember! The full text of long responses from Chat GPT must be included in an appendix so that the reader has access to the exact text that was generated. MacAdoo notes that, “it is particularly important to document the exact text created because Chat GPT will generate a unique response in each chat session, even if given the same prompt. If you create appendices or supplemental materials, remember that each should be called out at least once in the body of your APA Style paper” (2023).
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Creating a Reference to Chat GPT or Other AI
In his article, McAdoo explains how to find each of the four elements of a reference list entry – author, date, title, and source – for Chat GPT and other AI software:
- Author: The name of the author or creator of the AI software being used can usually be found in the software itself, or on a corresponding website. For example, the creator or author of Chat GPT is OpenAI. Remember that an author can be a single person, multiple people, a group like an institution or a government agency, or a combination of individuals and groups.
- Date: The date is the year of the version of the AI software being used. Include only the year. The version number provides the specific date information that a reader might need.
- Title: The name of the AI software being used is also used for the title in a reference list entry, e.g.: Chat GPT. Remember that titles are italicized in reference list entries. Different versions of AI software may be labelled. For example, OpenAI labels unique versions of their software such as ChatGPT-3, ChatGPT-4, etc. Use only the general name, e.g.: Chat GPT. The version number is included after the title in parentheses, e.g., (Version 2.0), or (Version 4). Use the version number as it appears.
- Parentheses or brackets can be used in reference list entries to include additional descriptions if a reader might need help understanding what’s being cited. MacAdoo notes that, “references for common sources, like journal articles, do not include these descriptions, but things outside of the typical peer-reviewed system often do. In the case of a reference for Chat GPT, provide the descriptor “Large language model” in square brackets. OpenAI describes ChatGPT-4 as a “large multimodal model,” so that description may be provided instead if you are using ChatGPT-4. Later versions and software or models from other companies may need different descriptions, based on how the publishers describe the model. The goal of the bracketed text is to briefly describe the kind of model to your reader.” (2023)
- Source: When the publisher and the author are the same, do not repeat the publisher’s name as a part of the source in a reference. Instead, go directly to the URL. The URL for Chat GPT is https://chat.openai.com/chat. For other AI models or products, use the URL that links as directly as possible to the source. MacAdoo recommends using the URL of the page where the AI can be accessed, not the publisher’s homepage.
Reference List Entry: Format
Author. (Date). Software. (Version) [Model]. Link.
Reference List Entry: Example
OpenAI. (2023). Chat GPT (Mar 14 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/chat
Parenthetical Citation
(Author, Date) , e.g.: (OpenAI, 2023)
Narrative Citation
Author (Date) , e.g.: OpenAI (2023)
.
Sources
Risks and limitations of ChatGPT. (2023). Code Academy. https://www.codecademy.com/learn/intro-to-chatgpt/modules/risks-and-limitations-of-chat-gpt/cheatsheet
Koender, L. & Könning, D. (2023). ChatGPT in education: What is ChatGPT capable of, and what are its limitations? Utrecht University. https://www.uu.nl/en/education/educational-development-training/knowledge-dossier/what-is-chatgpt-capable-of-and-what-are-its-limitations
MacAdoo, T. (2023, April 7). How to cite ChatGPT. American Psychological Association. https://apastyle.apa.org/blog/how-to-cite-chatgpt
Marr, B. (2023, March 3). The top 10 limitations of ChatGPT. Forbes Magazine. https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2023/03/03/the-top-10-limitations-of-chatgpt/?sh=1ca019d98f35
Weaver, K. D. & Muñoz Gómez, A. (2023, October 19). ChatGPT and generative artificial intelligence (AI): Incorrect bibliographic references. University of Waterloo Library. https://subjectguides.uwaterloo.ca/chatgpt_generative_ai/incorrectbibreferences
Citing is the process of acknowledging the sources of information and ideas. This takes the form of a citation. Citations must include specific pieces of information and must follow a consistent format. There are two parts of a citation – the in-text citation, and the reference list entry.
In an APA Style citation, the author is the person or people, or the group responsible for creating the work. An author can be a single person, multiple people, a group like an institution or a government agency, or a combination of individuals and groups.
In an APA Style citation, the date refers to the date of publication.
In an APA Style in-text citation or reference list entry, the title refers to the name of the work being cited.
In an APA Style citation, the source refers to where the information was found. The source includes - but is not limited to - the names of publishers, URLs and DOIs.
