If the use of AI is permitted for a specific assignment, use of the AI tool must be properly documented and cited. Consult with your instructor before using any form of artificial intelligence (ChatGPT, Grammarly, etc.) for your work. If you have been given permission to use AI tools, you must always cite the tool you used. Using AI models for your work may result in a violation of Towson University's Academic Integrity Policy, so be sure to confirm your use is appropriate with your instructor.
As with citing any form of information, you are looking to identify four primary elements.
The author of AI model is listed as the creator.
Examples:
The date is to indicate the version of the model you used. You can include the year or the specific date you used AI.
Use the name of the AI model: ChatGPT, QuillBot, etc. as the title. The version number is included after the title in parentheses.
When the publisher name and the author name are the same, do not repeat the publisher name in the source element of the reference, and move directly to the URL. This is the case for ChatGPT. The URL for ChatGPT is https://chat.openai.com/chat. For other models or products for which you may create a reference, use the URL that links as directly as possible to the source (i.e., the page where you can access the model, not the publisher’s homepage).
If you have used ChatGPT or other AI tools in your research, include a description of how you used the tool in the Methods section or a similar part of your paper. For literature reviews, essays, or response papers, this description might be placed in the introduction. Be sure to include the prompt you used and any relevant text that was generated in response.
Since the outputs from a ChatGPT session cannot be retrieved by other readers, citing them as personal communications in APA Style is not appropriate, as there is no human communicator. Therefore, you should credit the creator of the algorithm with a reference list entry and a corresponding in-text citation.
If you used generative AI to edit your work, save a copy of the unedited version. It is recommended that you keep track of your progress on assignments (i.e., edited and unedited drafts), as well as all communication with AI tools (e.g., prompts used and outputs from the AI tool).
When prompted with “Are college students more likely to use artificial intelligence when planning vacations?” the ChatGPT-generated text indicated that this population is more likely to use ai for vacation planning to receive "personalized travel recommendations, travel assistance and cost optimization", (OpenAI, 2024).
Reference:
OpenAI. (2024). ChatGPT (May 24 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/chat
Microsoft Copilot was used to brainstorming thesis topic ideas for this easy when prompted with “List at least five possible thesis topics based on Neil deGrassee Tyson's book 'Death by Black Hole'”, Copilot-generated text suggested five topics including "Astrobiology and the Search for Extraterrestrial Life, The Intersection of Science and Religion and The Role of Science in Popular Culture", (Microsoft, 2023).
Reference:
Microsoft. (2023). Copilot [Large language model]. https://copilot.microsoft.com/
