Current Journal Policies (2025)
Top journals, often through their publishers (e.g., AOM, SAGE, Wiley), have established clear guidelines. While specific wording varies, the core principles are highly consistent.Official Publisher Policies
For official and detailed guidelines, refer to publisher policies:
What Journals Generally Accept
- Assistive AI: Using AI for improving grammar, spelling, clarity, and formatting.
- Literature Discovery: AI assistance with literature searches and summarization for screening.
- Data Analysis & Visualization: AI support for preliminary data analysis and creating visualizations.
- Brainstorming & Outlining: Using AI to brainstorm ideas, provided the core arguments are the author’s own.
What Journals Prohibit or Strictly Limit
- AI as an Author: AI and LLMs cannot be credited as authors.
- Undeclared Generative AI: Any use of generative AI for writing or creating figures must be disclosed.
- Unverified Content: Authors are fully responsible for the accuracy of all AI-generated content.
- Core Intellectual Work: The primary analysis, argumentation, and conclusions must be the intellectual contribution of the human authors.
Why These Policies Exist
Quality Assurance
- AI can hallucinate, generating plausible but false information.
- Contextual understanding often requires deep human expertise.
- Peer review depends on human judgment about significance.
Intellectual Integrity
- Scholarly reputation is built on trustworthy contributions.
- Original thinking remains the core value of academic work.
- Credit and responsibility must align with actual intellectual contribution.
Practical Strategies for Success
Design Your Workflow Thoughtfully
- Use AI for processing: searching, screening, organizing information.
- Do your own analysis: interpreting patterns, drawing conclusions.
- Write in your own voice: even if AI helps with initial drafts.
- Verify everything: treat AI output as suggestions, not facts.
Build Documentation Habits
- Keep track of which AI we use and when
- Note how AI contributions fit into our overall process
- Save examples of AI inputs and our revisions
- Practice explaining our methodology to others
The Expert Network Advantage
Senior researchers can spot issues AI misses:- Field-specific context that affects interpretation
- Methodological problems that aren’t obvious
- Theoretical implications that require deep knowledge
Our Strategic Position: From AI Users to AI Architects
Generative AI transforms research from a world of information scarcity to one of insight abundance. In this new landscape, our value grows through our ability to architect systems that produce novel insights. Our strategic advantages include:- Conceptual Creativity: Devising new research questions and theoretical frameworks
- Critical Judgment: Evaluating the quality, relevance, and limitations of AI-generated synthesis
- Methodological Rigor: Designing and documenting transparent, defensible, and reproducible AI-assisted workflows
- Ethical Foundation: Navigating the complexities of intellectual ownership and responsible automation
Key Takeaways
For Our Research
- Use AI thoughtfully as a thinking partner that enhances our capacity
- Maintain ownership of our arguments and conclusions
- Document our process for transparency and reproducibility
- Verify everything through critical evaluation of AI contributions
For Our Careers
- Build genuine expertise through deep engagement with our fields
- Develop good judgment about when and how to engage with AI
- Cultivate relationships as human networks remain essential
- Stay adaptable as the landscape continues evolving
Next Steps
- ⚖️ Understand the choice framework → AI Choice Philosophy
- 🚀 Start building practical skills → Quick Start Checklist
- 🏠 Return to the main page → Introduction
Remember: These guidelines exist to help us succeed. Understanding the landscape helps us navigate it effectively while maintaining our creativity.