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AI Literacy in the Age of ChatGPT

Citing generative AI

Discuss the use of ChatGPT with students

You can help students care about being transparent in their use. Discuss ChatGPT and create a policy for whether and how to use it.

Help students understand why giving credit is important

You may also be interested in our UA Libraries tutorial for students. It's focused on why it's important to give credit to the work of others.
How Do I Give Credit to the Ideas of Others?

Go beyond traditional citations

Professor Ethan Mollick (Wharton School), recommends going beyond traditional citations. He asks his students to include an appendix to their papers, where they list each prompt they used in ChatGPT and discuss how they revised those prompts to get better output.

See: Mollick, Ethan R. and Mollick, Lilach, Using AI to Implement Effective Teaching Strategies in Classrooms: Five Strategies, Including Prompts (March 17, 2023).

Citation guidelines

Here are the guidelines for citing generative AI in MLA Style, APA Style, and Chicago Manual of Style.

It's also worth reading this advice, since some uses don't fit the standard way of citing: 

For guidelines on citing other formats of generative AI, see How to Cite AI Tools: A Guide for Students.

Publisher policies

Here are some statements from academic publishers about the use of generative AI.

  • Science Journals policy: 
    "Authors who use AI-assisted technologies as components of their research study or as aids in the writing or presentation of the manuscript should note this in the cover letter and in the acknowledgments section of the manuscript. Detailed information should be provided in the methods section: The full prompt used in the production of the work, as well as the AI tool and its version, should be disclosed.
  • Nature publishers: "... researchers using LLM tools should document this use in the methods or acknowledgements sections. If a paper does not include these sections, the introduction or another appropriate section can be used to document the use of the LLM.”
  • Taylor & Francis 
    "Authors are accountable for the originality, validity, and integrity of the content of their submissions. In choosing to use Generative AI tools, journal authors are expected to do so responsibly and in accordance with our journal editorial policies on authorship and principles of publishing ethics and book authors in accordance with our book publishing guidelines. This includes reviewing the outputs of any Generative AI tools and confirming content accuracy." 
  • Cambridge University Press.

    • AI use must be declared and clearly explained in publications such as research papers, just as we expect scholars to do with other software, tools and methodologies.

    • AI does not meet the Cambridge requirements for authorship, given the need for accountability. AI and LLM tools may not be listed as an author on any scholarly work published by Cambridge

    • Authors are accountable for the accuracy, integrity and originality of their research papers, including for any use of AI.

    • Any use of AI must not breach Cambridge’s plagiarism policy. Scholarly works must be the author’s own, and not present others’ ideas, data, words or other material without adequate citation and transparent referencing.

      Please note, individual journals may have more specific requirements or guidelines for upholding this policy.

Other publishers are also coming out with statements like these.