Assistance Required: A Qualitative Study of Researcher Needs for AI Research Assistants
M.J.C. Otten (TU Delft - Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science)
J. Yang – Mentor (TU Delft - Web Information Systems)
Pradeep K. Murukannaiah – Mentor (TU Delft - Interactive Intelligence)
L. Siebert – Graduation committee member (TU Delft - Interactive Intelligence)
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Abstract
The use of research assistants has increased significantly, providing support and automation for researchers. However, there is limited research on researchers using research assistants and what assistance researchers require for each research stage.
We interview researchers to gather insights into their opinions and usage, and afterwards develop a prototype. Researchers highlight that the most difficult part of research is the experiment design, which is reflected in the lack of literature.
Participants use research assistants for reading literature and writing, but request more support. The research assistant must be factual, transparent, and correct, and including a conversation allows for feedback and discussion.
We evaluate the prototype for the experiment design phase, highlighting the effectiveness of the component architecture by generating correct experiments.