No, ChatGPT isn’t going to change everything.
On the morning of December 5th, 2022, I received a text from a friend of mine introducing me to ChatGPT. His wife was preparing a sermon that week. She asked for my help in collecting research material for her message. She promised me a $5 Starbucks gift card. I would have done it for free. I love sermon research! But in this text, he showed me what happened when he typed into ChatGPT “Create a sermon based on biblical joy targeted towards college students.” Out popped the sermon. And just like that, I was out of a job. ChatGPT took away my $5 Starbucks gift card.[1]
ChatGPT has taken the internet by storm. It is, as the iPhone in 2007, the technology paradigm-shifter the world was not expecting.[2] This technology changes the landscape so much that we are just now getting glimpses into the potential benefits and issues. Students are already utilizing it to write papers.[3] It has even passed the Wharton Business School research paper test.[4] This changes everything.
But does it really change everything? To answer that question, I will bring in the late Dr. Edwin Friedman and his Failure of Nerve concept of the fallacy of expertise to balance our perspective. But before this, I want to highlight a downside to ChatGPT that haunts me. I will then conclude with a final thought on what cannot be delegated to ChatGPT.
A Concern with ChatGPT
Now, I do not want to come across as an anti-technology, fearful of progress kind of person. I believe the implication for good this opens up is unfathomable. However, my early fear around this technology is a nagging thought. No, it is not AI becoming smarter than us and bringing down humanity. That’s my second fear. My first concern is this: What are the implications of eliminating effort from humans? If you look at OpenAI’s mission statement (OpenAI is the company behind ChatGPT), you will see “OpenAI’s mission is to ensure that artificial general intelligence (AGI)—by which we mean highly autonomous systems that outperform humans at most economically valuable work—benefits all of humanity.”[5] The delegation of “most economically valuable work” to AI will result in the elimination of meaningful effort/work. Though living a blissful, effort-free life sounds ideal in theory, humans were made to work. It is in our nature. It was a part of the beginning of creation before sin entered the picture (in which work became more of a curse and frustration rather than a joy). My hope is that ChatGPT is a tool to reduce frustrating, tedious work so that our God-given creativity and effort can be redirected to exploring other possibilities. My fear is that just as students miss out on the benefit of effort through ChatGPT essays, we will diminish the deeply human part of us that finds meaning through effort and work.
What does this have to do with Friedman?
Now, let’s return to the assertion that ChatGPT will change everything. This is, I believe, an example of what Friedman calls the fallacy of expertise.[6] In short, Friedman argues that our world simply assumes what is needed is “more information.” This, according to Friedman, is the wrong foundation to place one’s confidence. He writes, “As long as leaders base their confidence on how much data they have acquired, they are doomed to feeling inadequate.”[7] The counter assertion to “ChatGPT changes everything” is Friedman’s contention that the quick-fix solution of data collection is simply a mask for the chronic anxiety of society. What is required instead is a self-differentiated position of strength in the midst of a chronically anxious environment. In an information-saturated world, this position of strength is displayed through filtering data, discerning what information is actually matters, as opposed to unreflectively clutching novel information.[8] This is not data-collection work, but emotional regulation work.
ChatGPT and Character Formation
The point I want to make is this: one cannot delegate to ChatGPT the lifelong, effortful work of virtuous character formation. To my knowledge, this isn’t what the tech blogs are advocating for. However, the truly important work of becoming people of virtue, seeking to create a better world for all, cannot be handed to AI. Yes, ChatGPT is making (and will continue to make) waves. But it doesn’t change everything. We still have the choice to become self-differentiated leaders who are not swayed by the daily tsunami of information. Becoming this self-differentiated leader comes through the effortful, character-formation work of personal emotional-reactivity management in the midst of emotionally-reactive, anxious systems.[9]
[1] To be fair, in the end, she did use some of what I provided.
[2] Erica Pandey Fried Dan Primack, Ina, “How ChatGPT Became the next Big Thing,” Axios, January 24, 2023, https://www.axios.com/2023/01/24/chatgpt-openai-iphone-boom.
[3] “New York City Schools Ban ChatGPT, Citing Negative Effect on Education – The Washington Post,” accessed January 24, 2023, https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2023/01/05/nyc-schools-ban-chatgpt/.
[4] Julia Mueller, “ChatGPT Passes Wharton Business School Test: Research Paper,” Text, The Hill (blog), January 23, 2023, https://thehill.com/policy/technology/3825754-chatgpt-passes-wharton-business-school-test-research-paper/.
[5] “About OpenAI,” OpenAI, December 11, 2015, https://openai.com/about/.
[6] Edwin H. Friedman, A Failure of Nerve: Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix (10th Anniversary, Revised Edition) (Church Publishing, Inc., 2017) 103-126.
[7] Ibid. 104.
[8] Ibid. 104-105.
[9] Ibid. 20.
About the Author
David Beavis
David is Australian by birth, was raised in Southern California, and is the Youth and Young Adults Pastor at B4 Church in Beaverton, Oregon. David and his wife, Laura, live in Hillsboro with their dog, Coava (named after their favorite coffee shop). M.A. Theology - Talbot School of Theology B.A. Psychology - Vanguard University of Southern California11 responses to “No, ChatGPT isn’t going to change everything.”
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Dang- you put some work into THIS!
I appreciate your thoughtful and organized approach in your blog. I am left wanting to read more and continue this discussion.
My experience with people and relationships….
There is no substitute for the hard work that goes into establishing and maintaining relationships. As great as Facebook and Instagram connect us with others- this can’t replace a conversation that is had with one person, having coffee, where eye contact and active listening are needed.
I would love to hear more from you about your work with the youth and young adults and how AI/technology either helps or hinders in maintaining relationships.
Thanks for the great blog- got me thinking.
Hi Kristy,
Thanks for reading! In regard to the effects of technology on the youth and young adults I get to pastor is the lack of real-life, social confidence I see in many. Now, this is anecdotal and I do not know what things were like 20 years ago. All I know is that I am consistently shocked at the inability of students and young adults (granted, this is not all of them, and may be a minority representation) to acknowledge your presence, look you in the eye, and carry on a conversation through follow up questions. As technology advances like a runaway train, my fear is too much delegation of effort-requiring activities that ends up hurting us in the long run.
David
A resource that I am eager to read is:
Consider: Harnessing the Power of Reflective Thinking in Your Organization by Daniel Patrick Forester. 2011
This book emphasizes the need to keep the flood of data at bay in order to think for ourselves. If you get this book and have some thoughts on it, please let me know your learnings.
I like this on page 50…..
“Where does human contact and face to face interaction fit relative to the use of all the technology available? Where are texture and empathy conveyed in your communication style?”
Great post, David and super interesting topic. I’ve noticed ChatGPT is taking the internet by storm in many ways but I’m also hesitant and lean more into self-differentiation. Everything sounds unoriginal that I sampled. I tried it for a tagline for the business and I used the playground for a few other random actions like a kid in a candy store for the first time but I did not stay long. I realized this AI is still based on the findings of the internet which in a lot of cases I do not trust or at least would like to double-check. I found it to be a tad frustrating and created more work for me, but overall I found it super cool at the same time. I think it has its place and can save time for some projects in business or unique copy for a social media post. Other than that, I have not found a way to use it in my life yet but I’m sure it will continue to grow.
Did you still get the Starbucks card?
Hi Michael,
Yes, that is the tension we must navigate in this technology: we cannot ignore it (it IS useful after all and can be a time saver) but we cannot incredulously delegate the management of our lives to this technology. We must learn to be wise with it – as with recent technologies such as social media, smart phones, and the internet overall.
And no, I did not get the gift card. I don’t even like Starbucks (too much good coffee in Portland after all!) but I’m still bitter at ChatGPT!
David,
Wow! I had never heard of ChatGPT and had to google it. Fascinating and scary both. Sometimes I think we have too much information at our fingertips. It makes us lazier and lazier as people. No need to put a little time and effort into something when everything you want is a breath away. I appreciate your work on this post! Excellent as always!
Hi Tonnett,
Thank you for the encouraging words! And yes, technology can make us lazier. But we can also slip into doing more, and thus burning ourselves out more quickly), due to being freed with the conveniences of technology. Sometimes technology is helpful in helping us get more done. I just placed a grocery order online to be picked up later today so that I wouldn’t have to spend 30-minutes strolling the aisles in order to find what we need for the week. Instead, I’m spending those 30-minutes on homework! Could I burn myself out with trying to fit more in with the freedoms technology affords? Sure. But also I’ve saved time from grocery shopping and can focus on my doctoral work! It’s a tension we must manage.
David, this is amazing, never heard of ChatGPT before. I appreciate information technology as well and, at the same time, fear for the future. I agree, “We still have the choice to become self-differentiated leaders who are not swayed by the daily tsunami of information.” As much as technology is helpful, there is a need for discernment.
David – I, too, have been seeing what ChatGPT can and can’t do for me. As a content creator, it’s unnerving to think that a machine could take over my job, but I also think it challenges me to be more creative. Thanks for relating it to Friedman–I had not made that connection!
David,
I’ve actually started to use ChatGPT to help jumpstart a few projects I’m working on. And I have seen almost all of the latest news stories about it.
You definitely nailed the top concern (at least for me) ChatGPT and Character formation. I do have the perspective to look back 20 years to say what things were like and it is different. There has been a rapid decline in character, integrity, and respect in young and old. Did technology cause this or was the door left open in our culture because the Church abdicated its role of being ‘salt and light?’ Technology has simply filled the void and it will do so again with AI. Another topic to add to our in person discussions.
Im sorry… say what!?! What in the WIDE WIDE WEB is happening!?
I have never heard of this in my farming bubble of Texas and I have a lot of concerns and questions…. You might not know the answers but here we go….
1. How are people saying that they are creating authentic content that is there’s? This seems so deceptive!
2. Are people really writing full blogs with this? If so do they have to give a disclaimer of any kind that they in fact did not write the content?
3. Sermons… wow this is a whole other level of dehumanization and allowing satan to interfere in my opinion. How can we give God the authority over the content as well as allow him to lead if people are allowing artificial intelligence give a message….
I have so many more questions… but lets start there and I am going to try to not personally go down a rabbit hole of doom while I investigate this further.
You are the best for always bringing the BEST and NEWEST things to the table. I am glad I have a friend to keep me up to date!