AI is turning research into a scientific monoculture
Conferences, journals, and funding calls in the social and behavioural sciences are increasingly dominated by (generative) AI1. Many academics have rebranded themselves as “AI researchers”. Every project finds its “AI angle.” This shift is understandable and important: generative AI is a consequential technological development, and psychologists and behavioural scientists are well-positioned to examine its impacts2. But this focus is becoming all-encompassing. The New Yorker recently argued that AI is “homogenizing our thoughts”3: that by repeatedly surfacing the most probable continuations of human thought, these systems are nudging human reasoning toward conformity. Ironically, scientific culture is drifting toward a meta-version of that claim. While earlier work warned that increasing AI-adoption may lead to a scientific monoculture4, empirical evidence now suggests this process is underway5. In studying AI, research practices are themselves becoming more uniform - converging not o...
