ChatGPT has become a very popular tool for students. With its impressive capabilities and assistance of quick answers, the answer to almost any question, writing essays, making study guides/schedules, or even giving advice. As we all know, this AI tool is extremely convenient. But at what cost? It’s important to remember that everything is best in moderation, and the use of AI is no exception. So, although ChatGPT is a helpful shortcut, consider the long-term effects it has on you and your brain’s functions.
Using ChatGPT on occasion doesn’t have any considerable effect on you, but developing a reliance on AI, on the other hand, is dangerous. An MIT study conducted an experiment where the subjects wrote multiple essays. The participants were divided into three groups, one where they had the ability to use ChatGPT throughout their writing process, one that could use the internet but not AI, and the last group where they could only use their own brain and train of thought. The study investigated the brain’s cognitive engagement and neural activations during the essay writing process. The participants that only used their brain had significantly more neural connectivity patterns. The brain-only group also had the strongest and widest range of network connections within the brain. The runner-up was the search engine group, which was found to have intermediate levels of engagement. And lastly, at the bottom, was the group that used ChatGPT. This group had the lowest level of engagement and over the course of the experiment, the participants were found to be “underperformed at neural, linguistic, and behavioral levels.”
So why does this matter? Why not just get the work done and do something more enjoyable with your time? Well, forcing your brain to think and work helps it to stay healthy. Your brain is like a muscle, so the more you use it the stronger it can become. To build and strengthen connections in your brain, you must first use your brain to establish those connections and then keep using those cells and to maintain or strengthen them. When your brain is more intellectually stimulated, you continuously build and rewire these connections. This is crucial for the development of your memory, the ability to adapt to new environments, recovery from health concerns like a stroke, and more. A better-connected brain also allows you to better handle areas of damage or health concerns. For example, studies show that the more education and productive stimulation your brain has can help its ability to cope and lowers your chances of dementia.
Becoming overly reliant on AI robs your brain of these important processes. It also takes away any uniqueness or creativity in your work. ChatGPT cannot think of anything new; it’s impossible. So, all it can do is relay the data, coding, and information it’s already been fed. To apply yourself is so important, especially when you may need these skills or education in the future. Going through the motions and completing work on your own comes with a sense of accomplishment. These accomplishments can give you momentum and a strong habit of completing more work. In the end, these habits can also lead to you becoming more driven, motivated, and productive.
Something else to consider is the education you’re cheating yourself out of by using ChatGPT. There is little retention in the act of copy and paste. Using AI makes you passive in the process of learning and creating. This lack of engagement becomes apparent in your work too, with its lack of originality, uniqueness, and creativity. There becomes a disconnect from your work and yourself, but this connection is what fosters your ability to get a job one day and be skilled at it. When you enter the work force, you may need the skills you became so reliant on AI to do for you.
It’s become incredibly and increasingly easy to pass your work off to AI and do other things with your time. But next time before you choose this shortcut, remember that you’re deluding yourself into thinking it’s okay. Overreliance on AI affects the growth of cell connections in your brain, puts your health at risk, and takes away any individuality in your work, which could affect your future career. Despite its efforts, ChatGPT will always lack depth and the personal touch that makes your work so important. It’s vital to embrace your personal creativity and the amazing ways your brain can process thought. So, next time you have an assignment to complete, try to remember that all the tools you need are already in your own head.