AI can be a powerful tool in manuscript preparation. However, without careful oversight, use of this powerful tool can introduce substantial errors that may compromise your manuscripts’ accuracy and reliability. More researchers are turning to Generative AI (GenAI) for assistance in manuscript writing as AI tools can be used to speed up formatting the manuscript for journal requirements, assisting with grammar, and can be a tool to support authors with the planning and structure of manuscripts. With the existing pressures on researchers to publish and an already busy schedule, the potential opportunity to save time by using AI tools can be very appealing.
Despite the advantages of AI assistance, when not used appropriately and checked carefully, GenAI can introduce significant errors into your manuscript and This blog will focus on the impact of unverified use of GenAI on a study’s bibliography. The impact AI is having on citation integrity was a topic of discussion at a recent COPE webinar. Citations are used as evidence and, in reviews, they become data themselves. Therefore, the reliability of the bibliography is paramount to the study’s overall grounding and potential impact. When there are substantial errors in the references, this can result in significant delays to publication or possible rejection if the Editor has lost confidence in the reliability of the literature review.
Recent reports have observed an increased number of submissions and articles where references do not exist, or where elements of a citation are incorrect. This is something we also see at Karger Publishers. Many of the affected submissions have something in common…when we ask authors about the cause of errors in their bibliography, often their answers are similar, ‘we used AI tools in formatting or preparing the references’.
Many of the issues arise, not from deliberate attempt to deceive a reader, but from a misunderstanding in how AI tools generate and format citations. With planning and care, it is easy to manage the risks associated with using AI based tools to prepare the reference section of your manuscript. Read on to learn more about these risks and what you can do to ensure responsible GenAI use in your work.
Risks
AI can hallucinate
When Generative AI is used, either to support your literature review or to format your list of references, it can hallucinate entire references that do not exist. The references look real but are entirely fictional.
Inaccurate citation information
AI tools can make mistakes in bibliographic information or can merge the information from two different citations. This can result in errors in title, authors names, page numbers and DOIs.
Irrelevant or biased citations
AI can introduce citations that are not relevant to the article or represent a biased view of the literature. The citations AI has provided may not support the claims they are attached to or may represent only a subset or a biased view of the literature on the topic. This can weaken your conclusions and can be misleading to readers.
What can you do?
As an author, you must be aware of the risks, limitations and opportunities associated with any technology you deploy as part of your research. When using AI tools to format your bibliography, we recommend checking each reference carefully. You can minimise the risk of introducing erroneous references by keeping a clear audit trail of the references you have consulted over the course of your research, using trusted databases (e.g. PubMed, Crossref, Web of Science) for accurate citation information and incorporating reference checking into the workflow of your manuscript preparation.
If you decide to use AI as an author, it should be done responsibly, and you must abide by the policy set out by the journal or publisher. AI tools cannot take responsibility for the content of a manuscript, and as an author you are fully accountable for the material presented in your article. If AI is used in the preparation on a manuscript, Karger requires a statement in either the methods or acknowledgements noting the details of the use of AI. More information on Karger’s policy on AI and the statement that must be included can be found on our AI Principles page
Ultimately, AI tools can be used effectively to assist in preparing citations, however it cannot replace the role of the authors and their scholarly judgement.
