Coach not crutch: Evidence that AI can improve writing skill despite reducing effort

Abstract

In a series of highly-powered empirical studies, we examine the intuition that by sparing effort, using AI inevitably hinders learning. First, in a nationally representative survey of young adults, the majority expressed the view that using AI makes people lazier and less capable. Next, in a random-assignment experiment, we gave participants a tutorial on best practices in professional writing, then provided one group with access to an AI writing tool and asked another to practice writing on their own. Those who practiced with AI indeed exerted less effort while practicing -- yet wrote better cover letters in no-AI writing tests. In a second experiment with more rigorous control conditions, access to AI improved writing more than either googling cover letter examples and tips or receiving personalized feedback on their practice letters from experienced human editors. A third experiment explained these learning gains by showing that AI can teach by example: participants who viewed a cover letter that had been revised by the AI tool but did no further practice improved their writing as much as those who practiced writing with the original AI tool. Collectively, these pre-registered experiments suggest that AI can exert opposing effects on effort and learning rate -- making it possible in at least some cases to work less and learn more.