Principal Investigator (PI): Chihua LI, Assistant Professor
Year: 2024
“The rapid integration of GAI tools like ChatGPT into the academic workflow is a testament to the digital transformation within scholarly communication. This transition not only showcases the potential of GAI in enhancing the efficiency and quality of research output but also introduces a new set of challenges and considerations for regulatory science professionals. These challenges pertain to the very core of regulatory sciences—ensuring that the adoption of new technologies adheres to established ethical, legal, and procedural standards.”
Regulatory Science Challenge
Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI), exemplified by the release of ChatGPT in November 2022, has rapidly garnered widespread attention for its multifaceted capabilities, attracting billions of visits each month globally. Its adoption within academic and scholarly publishing, notably in manuscript preparation and peer review processes, marks a significant pivot towards digital innovation. With over 1000 medical publications acknowledging the utility of GAI tools in enhancing the efficiency and quality of scholarly output, its influence is undeniable. These tools have been instrumental in streamlining literature reviews, study design formulation, data analysis, result interpretation, content summarization, code review, method verification, and drafting of feedback. However, the integration of GAI into medical research and publishing raises critical concerns about authorship eligibility, the accuracy of generated content, data privacy, and the maintenance of integrity and originality. In response, a growing number of journals, organizations, and publishers have begun to implement and regularly update GAI usage guidelines. This evolving landscape underscores the necessity for an in-depth analysis of GAI usage guidelines across medical journals, aiming to identify potential discrepancies and foster appropriate application in scholarly publishing.
Project Description
This study aims to examine and synthesize the guidelines for employing Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI), with a focus on both medical and pharmaceutical sciences, including to conduct a systematic examination of GAI usage guidelines for authors, reviewers, and editors, to examine the relationship between journal characteristics and GAI guidelines for authors and reviewers, and to build a publicly accessible database for these guidelines and formulate recommendations.
The research aligns with the objectives of regulatory sciences by aiming to identify gaps and inconsistencies that could compromise the quality and integrity of medical research. The study seeks to contribute to the development of comprehensive and harmonized standards that facilitate the responsible use of GAI in medical research and scholarly publishing.
