Author
Listed:
- Hengzhi Hu
(Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia)
- Qing Zhou
(Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
Gannan Normal University)
- Harwati Hashim
(Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia)
Abstract
In recent years, the academic community has witnessed a surge of research articles generated with the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) tools, particularly ChatGPT. This development introduces not only ethical and practical concerns but also new possibilities and tensions in identity negotiation for researchers—particularly those writing in English as an additional language—a topic that remains under-investigated. As such, this study examines how non-native English researchers navigate their identity construction and negotiation when using ChatGPT in their research writing. Employing a qualitative exploratory design, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 25 non-native English researchers. Findings revealed five identity configurations: reluctant adoption (initial use marked by secrecy and moral tension), conditional alignment (critical acceptance of ChatGPT as a linguistic scaffold), strategic realignment (redefinition of the ideal self around performance and output), lingering dissonance (continued internal conflict despite academic success), and reflective congruence (integration of AI use as an ethically managed scholarly practice). These configurations illustrate varying degrees of (in)congruence between self-image, ideal self, and self-esteem, mediated through ChatGPT use in research writing, with potential disciplinary similarities and differences. These findings underscore the complex, evolving nature of researcher identity in AI-mediated environments and suggest that identity negotiation can be a matter of epistemic values, ethical engagement, and institutional expectations. Implications point to the need for researchers to critically reflect on how AI tools mediate their scholarly voice and professional identity, for academic institutions to foster reflective policies that support responsible AI use, and for publishers and the wider academic community to reassess authorship norms in light of emerging technological practices.
Suggested Citation
Hengzhi Hu & Qing Zhou & Harwati Hashim, 2025.
"Negotiating identity in the age of ChatGPT: non-native English researchers’ experiences with AI-assisted academic writing,"
Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 12(1), pages 1-11, December.
Handle:
RePEc:pal:palcom:v:12:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1057_s41599-025-05351-4
DOI: 10.1057/s41599-025-05351-4
Download full text from publisher
As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.
Corrections
All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:pal:palcom:v:12:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1057_s41599-025-05351-4. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.
If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.
We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .
If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.
For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.nature.com/ .
Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through
the various RePEc services.