Work

Stochastic Publics: The Emergence and Ethics of AI-Generated Publics in Technical Communication

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: The concept of a public—a group of strangers drawn together through their mutual attention to a text—has historically been tied to the notion of human intentionality. The recent popularization of artificial intelligence (AI) large language models (such as ChatGPT) destabilizes this connection. When large language models generate text, they may inadvertently form stochastic publics—groups pulled together through the randomization of biased data patterns drawn from AI training material. This exploratory study draws on a three-phase dialogue with OpenAI's ChatGPT 4 to identify the risks of stochastic publics and suggest human-originated interventions grounded in feminist care ethics.

Source: Journal of Business and Technical Communication

DOI: 10.1177/10506519241280592

Author: Jamie Littlefield

Institution: Texas Tech University

Language: English

Topic: Ethics and Social Impacts of AI

Subfield: Safety Research

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: bronze

OpenAlex ID: W4402740191

FWCI: 1.23

Cites: 32

Cited by: 3

Related to: 10