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Montana State University Billings

AI Tools (ChatGPT, Copilot, & Large Language Models)

If in doubt, cite it!

 

The general practice of citation is that anything that comes from somewhere else should be cited if it isn't an original thought, isn't common knowledge, and/or is a place where the information was published.

 

Where an assignment requires an AI source to be cited, a student must reference all the content from tool included in the assignment. Failure to reference externally sourced, non-original work can result in academic dishonesty. References should provide clear and accurate information for each source and should identify where they have been used in the work.

 

References

University of Minnesota Libraries. (2023, July 21). ChatGPT and other AI tools. https://libguides.umn.edu/c.php?g=1314591&p=9664664

 

Cite AI-generated Content Responsibly

🗺️ Plan Ahead

 

First, confirm with that instructor that using ChatGPT, Copilot, or other AI-generated content is acceptable before citing it. The instructor may also have a specific way they would like to reference ChatGPT or Copilot.

💪 Be Responsible

 

Everyone is still learning how to ethically use and cite generative AI resources. As such, err on the side of transparency when using one. Here are some ideas for citing generative AI responsibly:

 

  • Save a transcript of the chat. Make it available to or retrievable by the reader, possibly by including it as an appendix to the work or as an online supplement.
  • Describe the prompt that generated the specific ChatGPT or Copilot response.
  • Include the date when the response was generated or date of access. This is important as these tools will update regularly.
  • Acknowledge how the tool was used. Consider doing this even if only using generative AI to plan your paper or generate ideas and don't include any of its generated content.

 

References

Scheelke, A. (2023, July 10). AI, ChatGPT, and the Library. https://libguides.slcc.edu/ChatGPT/InformationLiteracy

APA Style

Include a description of the prompt when quoting output from a generative AI tool in your paper. Use the author of the AI algorithm - or the company who produced the tool - in both the in-text citation and full reference. It may be worthwhile to include the chat's transcript as an appendix to your project.

 

Format:

Author. (Date). Name of tool (Version of tool) [Large language model]. URL

 

Example:

OpenAI. (2023). ChatGPT (Mar 14 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/chat

 

In-Text Citation Example:

(OpenAI, 2023)

 

Source – APA: How to cite ChatGPT (April 7, 2023)

MLA Style

Format:

"Description of chat" prompt. Name of AI tool, version of AI tool, Company, Date of chat, URL.

 

Example: 

"Examples of harm reduction initiatives" prompt. ChatGPT, 23 Mar. version, OpenAI, 4 Mar. 2023, chat.openai.com/chat.

 

In-Text Citation Example:

("Examples of harm reduction")

 

If you create a shareable link to the chat transcript, include that instead of the tool's URL.

 

MLA also recommends acknowledging when you used the tool in a note or your text as well as verifying any sources or citations the tool supplies.

 

Source – How do I cite generative AI in MLA style? (March 17, 2023)