AI tools are making the world look weird
15 hours ago
- #Cultural Diversity
- #AI Bias
- #WEIRD Populations
- AI is often compared to human psychology, but 'human' benchmarks are based on WEIRD (Western, Educated, Industrialised, Rich, Democratic) populations.
- A 2023 Harvard study found ChatGPT's accuracy in simulating cultural values decreases with greater cultural distance from the USA.
- The study used the World Values Survey (WVS) to compare ChatGPT's responses with real data from different countries.
- AI tools perform poorly in non-WEIRD countries, exacerbating existing research budget disparities.
- AI biases can distort international research, flattening diverse insights into a homogenized, Californian perspective.
- Researchers should invest in cultural fitness by diversifying data sources, collaborating with local experts, and using hybrid human-AI methods.
- AI product users should minimize cultural meaning loss by combining AI with human moderation and diverse training data.
- The dominance of US-based LLMs risks narrowing global perspectives in research.
- STRAT7 plans to experiment with LLMs from different continents to explore cultural biases further.