Scientific research in the age of AI
The emergence of AI in research: on the verge of a paradigm shift?
Authors
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Zoltán Szűts
AffiliationProf. Dr. Zoltán Szűts is a digital pedagogy, media and information society researcher, university professor, Dean of the Faculty of Pedagogy of Eszterházy Károly Catholic University, Head of the Doctoral School of Educational Sciences and the Department of Educational Innovation.
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Dalma Lilla Dominek
AffiliationDalma Lilla Dr. Dominek is an associate professor at the Department of Social Communication at the Ludovika University of Public Service and a senior researcher at the Institute for Learning Research. She teaches communication, experiential education, and cultural education. She is a member of the Andragogy Subcommittee of the Pedagogical Committee of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences
Abstract
The emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) represents a paradigm shift in scientific research , transcending its role as a mere tool to fundamentally reshape the essence of scientific inquiry. This paper examines the dual impact of AI: its function in substituting routine and time-consuming tasks, such as literature review and data processing, thereby enabling researchers to focus on higher-level innovation ; and its role in augmenting human capabilities in areas like hypothesis generation and complex analysis. The study also addresses the significant challenges posed by AI, including ethical considerations like algorithmic bias , the spread of misinformation through "hallucinations" , and issues of intellectual property. Furthermore, it considers the socio-psychological consequences, such as diminished human interaction and the risk of automation complacency. The paper concludes that the future for researchers lies not in competing with AI, but in its strategic utilization. This necessitates the development of new competencies—including critical thinking, ethical literacy, and prompt engineering —to leverage AI's capabilities while reinforcing the uniquely human attributes of creativity, empathy, and complex judgment that remain indispensable for scientific discovery.
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