I Asked GPT-4o To Review My Research Paper. It Did Wonders!

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Syeda Laiba Alam

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Shortly after its release, I discussed how GPT-4o is gonna change the AI landscape big time. So, I thought to put its abilities to test by prompting it to review my academic research paper based on a particular structure.

The Prompt

Being a student of Psychology, writing research papers is something I cannot escape. Every semester, we have to write multiple research papers for our courses. While I cannot use AI to write my research papers for me, that would be super unethical and my professor will probably grade me an F on it, I can definitely use it to my advantage in other ways. 

So, after finalizing my work, I headed to GPT-4o and uploaded the document there. Good thing that this AI chatbot now supports input in the form of documents (Word and PDF files). A little note before proceeding, all research papers in the field of Psychology need to follow a particular format provided by the American Psychological Association (APA). 

I began with the prompt “I wrote a research paper on the topic “Financial Stress and Life Satisfaction: A Correlational Study.” Review my paper and make sure it follows the APA format.” 

Thorough Analysis Of My Paper

GPT-4o analyzed the PDF down to the minute details, from the title page to the references. The response was divided into 3 sections.

The first section provided a general outline of the key areas of APA formatting standards, while the second section highlighted what I did correctly in each part of the paper and the rules that should be followed in APA style. For example, “The abstract is well-placed, but ensure it’s between 150-250 words.”

Lastly, the third section provided direct instructions on the changes needed to ensure my paper follows the required APA structure. One of the suggestions was “Add a running head (e.g., “Running head: FINANCIAL STRESS AND LIFE SATISFACTION”) and page number on the title page.” I realized that I had overlooked a crucial section of my research paper, which could have affected my grade.

The same section guided me toward the correct style of writing references in the APA format, something that I had lowkey messed up in my paper.

The Experience

Before the release of GPT-4o, I had done the same thing with the previous version of chatGPT and it was not really helpful. Three reasons for that.

One, uploading documents was not an option in the earlier versions. Two, it never understood my prompt, nor was it aware of the APA format of writing research papers, hence it only guided me with the general guidelines. And three, the analysis seemed superficial, and the response lacked specificness to the content of my paper.

I was thoroughly impressed by how effectively this advanced version assisted me with my academic needs in such a precise and tailored manner and was honestly not expecting such.

Thanks to GPT-4o, I learned the mistakes and important aspects I had missed out on in my work. Such detailed responses also ensured that I would remember to structure my paper correctly in future.

Can You Rely On GPT-4o Responses For Academics?

While the responses were definitely correct, there’s no harm in double-checking using the relevant official websites. After incorporating the suggested changes, I went to the APA website and searched for its format. To my surprise, everything GPT-4o suggested was accurate as per the official format.

I would say that with time, chatGPT has improved massively and become more advanced in aiding users. So you can rely on it, but keep it limited to proofreading and reviewing, acting as a second eye for your work. Other than that, it is important to ensure authenticity and originality in all your work.

Syeda Laiba Alam

[How-To Guides Expert]

Laiba, our tech guru at Tech4Gamers, simplifies and crafts How-To Guides with a Google IT Support Certificate. Beyond tech, she captures the city’s aesthetics through her lens. Join her journey where tech meets creativity!

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