Papers written using ChatGPT are characterized by repeated words and ideas – Research

The researchers found that word repetition, tautology, and paragraphs starting with “however” are some of the distinctive features of ChatGPT’s writing style.

According to a study by Cambridge University Press and Assessment, the writing style of AI tools is “bland” and “journalistic.”

Previously, the rise of generative AI tools such as ChatGPT raised concerns about student cheating in education.

The researchers, with the help of ChatGPT, compared essays written by three first-year undergraduate students with 164 essays written by IGCSE students.

The papers are marked by examiners, and then the undergraduates are interviewed and their papers analyzed.

The study found that papers written with the help of ChatGPT performed poorly in analytical and comparative skills compared to non-ChatGPT-assisted papers.

But the ChatGPT-assisted essay excelled in terms of information and reflective skills.

The researchers found some key features of ChatGPT’s writing style, including the use of Latin vocabulary, repetition of words or phrases and ideas, and repetition.

Papers written with the help of ChatGPT were also more likely to use paragraphs beginning with discourse markers such as “however,” “furthermore,” and “generally,” as well as numbered lists with items.

Researchers say ChatGPT’s default writing style “echoes the bland, concise, and objective style of much generic news writing on the Internet.”

“Students found ChatGPT useful for gathering information quickly,” the report said.

“However, they believe that relying solely on this technology will produce papers of lower academic quality.”

Jude Brady, principal researcher at Cambridge University Press and Assessment, said: “Our findings provide insights into the growing field of generative artificial intelligence and assessment, which remains largely uncharted territory.

“Although the sample size is small, we are excited about these findings because of their ability to inform the work of teachers and students.”

She added: “We hope our research can help people identify when ChatGPT has written a piece of text.

“Learning to use and detect generative AI is an increasingly important aspect of digital literacy for students and the wider population.”