Sallam Malik, Salim Nesreen A, Al-Tammemi Ala'a B, Barakat Muna, Fayyad Diaa, Hallit Souheil, Harapan Harapan, Hallit Rabih, Mahafzah Azmi
Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Forensic Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Jordan, Amman, JOR.
Department of Clinical Laboratories and Forensic Medicine, Jordan University Hospital, Amman, JOR.
Cureus. 2023 Feb 15;15(2):e35029. doi: 10.7759/cureus.35029. eCollection 2023 Feb.
Being on the verge of a revolutionary approach to gathering information, ChatGPT (an artificial intelligence (AI)-based language model developed by OpenAI, and capable of producing human-like text) could be the prime motive of a paradigm shift on how humans will acquire information. Despite the concerns related to the use of such a promising tool in relation to the future of the quality of education, this technology will soon be incorporated into web search engines mandating the need to evaluate the output of such a tool. Previous studies showed that dependence on some sources of online information (e.g., social media platforms) was associated with higher rates of vaccination hesitancy. Therefore, the aim of the current study was to describe the output of ChatGPT regarding coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine conspiracy beliefs. and compulsory vaccination.
The current descriptive study was conducted on January 14, 2023 using the ChatGPT from OpenAI (OpenAI, L.L.C., San Francisco, CA, USA). The output was evaluated by two authors and the degree of agreement regarding the correctness, clarity, conciseness, and bias was evaluated using Cohen's kappa.
The ChatGPT responses were dismissive of conspiratorial ideas about severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) origins labeling it as non-credible and lacking scientific evidence. Additionally, ChatGPT responses were totally against COVID-19 vaccine conspiracy statements. Regarding compulsory vaccination, ChatGPT responses were neutral citing the following as advantages of this strategy: protecting public health, maintaining herd immunity, reducing the spread of disease, cost-effectiveness, and legal obligation, and on the other hand, it cited the following as disadvantages of compulsory vaccination: ethical and legal concerns, mistrust and resistance, logistical challenges, and limited resources and knowledge.
The current study showed that ChatGPT could be a source of information to challenge COVID-19 vaccine conspiracies. For compulsory vaccination, ChatGPT resonated with the divided opinion in the scientific community toward such a strategy; nevertheless, it detailed the pros and cons of this approach. As it currently stands, the judicious use of ChatGPT could be utilized as a user-friendly source of COVID-19 vaccine information that could challenge conspiracy ideas with clear, concise, and non-biased content. However, ChatGPT content cannot be used as an alternative to the original reliable sources of vaccine information (e.g., the World Health Organization [WHO] and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC]).
ChatGPT（OpenAI开发的一种基于人工智能的语言模型，能够生成类似人类的文本）正处于信息收集方式变革的边缘，它可能是人类获取信息方式发生范式转变的主要推动因素。尽管人们对在教育质量未来方面使用这样一个有前景的工具存在担忧，但这项技术很快将被整合到网络搜索引擎中，这就要求我们有必要评估该工具的输出结果。此前的研究表明，对某些在线信息来源（如社交媒体平台）的依赖与更高的疫苗犹豫率相关。因此，本研究的目的是描述ChatGPT关于2019冠状病毒病（COVID-19）疫苗阴谋论信念和强制接种疫苗的输出内容。
本描述性研究于2023年1月14日使用OpenAI（美国加利福尼亚州旧金山的OpenAI有限责任公司）的ChatGPT进行。由两名作者对输出结果进行评估，并使用科恩kappa系数评估在正确性、清晰度、简洁性和偏差方面的一致程度。
ChatGPT的回复对关于严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒2（SARS-CoV-2）起源的阴谋论持否定态度，称其不可信且缺乏科学依据。此外，ChatGPT的回复完全反对COVID-19疫苗阴谋论说法。关于强制接种疫苗，ChatGPT的回复持中立态度，列举了该策略的以下优点：保护公众健康、维持群体免疫、减少疾病传播、成本效益和法律义务，另一方面，它列举了强制接种疫苗的以下缺点：伦理和法律问题、不信任和抵制、后勤挑战以及资源和知识有限。
本研究表明，ChatGPT可以作为挑战COVID-19疫苗阴谋论的信息来源。对于强制接种疫苗，ChatGPT与科学界对该策略的分歧意见产生了共鸣；然而，它详细阐述了这种方法的利弊。就目前情况而言，明智地使用ChatGPT可以作为一个用户友好的COVID-19疫苗信息来源，以清晰、简洁和无偏见的内容挑战阴谋论观点。然而，ChatGPT的内容不能替代原始可靠的疫苗信息来源（如世界卫生组织[WHO]和美国疾病控制与预防中心[CDC]）。
