AUTHOR=Linegar Mitchell , Kocielnik Rafal , Alvarez R. Michael TITLE=Large language models and political science JOURNAL=Frontiers in Political Science VOLUME=5 YEAR=2023 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/political-science/articles/10.3389/fpos.2023.1257092 DOI=10.3389/fpos.2023.1257092 ISSN=2673-3145 ABSTRACT=

Large Language Models (LLMs) are a type of artificial intelligence that uses information from very large datasets to model the use of language and generate content. While LLMs like GPT-3 have been used widely in many applications, the recent public release of OpenAI's ChatGPT has opened more debate about the potential uses and abuses of LLMs. In this paper, we provide a brief introduction to LLMs and discuss their potential application in political science and political methodology. We use two examples of LLMs from our recent research to illustrate how LLMs open new areas of research. We conclude with a discussion of how researchers can use LLMs in their work, and issues that researchers need to be aware of regarding using LLMs in political science and political methodology.