Using AI Ethically
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To maintain academic integrity, transparency and the ethical use of generative AI tools, students have the responsibility to learn about the ethical risks of using AI and develop the skills and awareness necessary to minimize the risk of misuse.
Citations and Acknowledgement of AI use
The use of generative AI tools in assessment without appropriate citations and acknowledgement is considered academic dishonesty and potential plagiarism which constitute severe academic misconduct and require disciplinary actions. Thus, students must abide by the course guidelines and acknowledge any use of AI responsibly.
Q: Can I copy and paste AI generated output into my essays?
A: “While improper use of generative AI tools is generally course and task-specific, asking generative AI tools to generate long pieces of text and copying and pasting them into an assessed assignment task is NOT considered proper use.”
In most scenarios, texts produced by generative AI tools are NOT considered reliable, accurate, or trustworthy representations of information. This is why a declaration and acknowledgement approach to the use of generative AI tools is needed. Students can refer to relevant style and citation guidelines from professional organisations, such as the American Psychological Association (APA), Modern Language Association (MLA) and the University of Chicago Press.
Acknowledging the use of AI generative tools
Using the APA citation format as an example, let's learn about how to properly acknowledge the use of AI in your assignments.
The APA citation format commonly used by students and researchers requires acknowledging the use of generative AI. The APA generative AI policy (APA Publishing Policies, 2024) states that the author must specify:
The APA citation format commonly used by students and researchers requires acknowledging the use of generative AI. The APA generative AI policy (APA Publishing Policies, 2024) states that the author must specify:
…in the methods section how, when, and to what extent AI was used. Authors in APA publications are required to upload the full output of the AI as supplemental material.
If you have used ANY generative AI tools in your assignments, clearly describe how you used the tool in the relevant sections, and provide the prompt you used and the relevant text that was generated in response.
Q: What if I want to quote AI’s answer, can I just paraphrase it?
A: When you quote, paraphrase, or use part of or the entire output of AI-generated text content, you must include a reference. Quoting AI-generated text is similar to sharing an algorithm’s output, and therefore, students should credit the author of the algorithm (e.g. OpenAI for ChatGPT) with a reference list entry and the corresponding in-text citation.
Examples
Example 1 – Stating the purpose
“I acknowledge the use of ChatGPT (https://chat.openai.com/) to help brainstorm keywords for my essay on relationships between Indigenous peoples and law enforcement in Canada. I entered the following prompts on April 28, 2023: “What are synonyms for law enforcement? What are synonyms for Indigenous peoples of Canada?” The output was used to find academic sources in the JIBC Library database. A copy of the original output is attached as Appendix A in my assignment.”
Example 2 – Stating the changes made by the student
“I acknowledge the use of ChatGPT (https://chat.openai.com/chat) to generate materials for background research for my BUSN-1289 assignment. I entered the following prompts on April 27, 2023: “Write a 100-word summary of the 2008 stock market crash.” The original output was adapted and modified for the final response. A copy of the original output is attached as Appendix A in my assignment.”
Example 3 – In-text citations for quoting AI-generated texts
When given a follow-up prompt of “What is a more accurate representation?” the ChatGPT-generated text indicated that “different brain regions work together to support various cognitive processes” and “the functional specialization of different regions can change in response to experience and environmental factors” (OpenAI, 2023; see Appendix A for the full transcript).
Example 4 – Reference List
Reference
OpenAI. (2023). ChatGPT (Mar 14 version) [Large language model].
https://chat.openai.com/chat
Example 5 – Appendix
Appendix A
Screenshot of 2008 Stock Market Crash Conversation with ChatGPT
Note: The screenshot is from a conversation with ChatGPT (OpenAI, 2023) with the prompt "Write a 100-word summary of the 2008 stock market crash.
Q: What if I used AI for editing?
A: All functional uses of AI, such as editing or translating text, should be mentioned in the acknowledgments section (if there is one) or the text itself, or in another appropriate location.
In summary, include the following statements in your assignments:
- Written acknowledgement of the generative AI tool used and for what purpose
- In-text citations if any AI-generated texts are used, paraphrased or modified
- The prompt(s) used to generate the content
- A note on any modifications that you made
- The original output with your submission (e.g. screenshot of the chat record)
**Note: Part of the materials of this section is adapted from this page: Artificial Intelligence (AI) - APA 7th edition - Citations - LibGuides at Justice Institute of British Columbia
**To learn more about the APA AI citation, visit the APA blog on How to cite ChatGPT.
**To learn more about the APA AI citation, visit the APA blog on How to cite ChatGPT.
