Thinking beyond the anthropomorphic paradigm benefits LLM research

Understand

Anthropomorphism, or the attribution of human traits to technology, is an automatic and unconscious response that occurs even in those with advanced technical expertise.

• In this position paper, we analyze hundreds of thousands of research articles to present empirical evidence of the prevalence and growth of anthropomorphic terminology in research on large language models (LLMs).
• We argue for challenging the deeper assumptions reflected in this terminology -- which, though often useful, may inadvertently constrain LLM development -- and broadening beyond them to open new pathways for understanding and improving LLMs.
• Specifically, we identify and examine five anthropomorphic assumptions that shape research across the LLM development lifecycle.