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Thinking beyond the anthropomorphic paradigm benefits LLM research

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arxiv 2502.09192 v2 pith:J3YJX5E6 submitted 2025-02-13 cs.CL

classification cs.CL
keywords researchanthropomorphicdevelopmentllmsassumptionsbeyondempiricallanguage
verification ladder T0 review T1 audit T2 compute T3 formal
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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. For each assumption (e.g., that LLMs must use natural language for reasoning, or that they should be evaluated on benchmarks originally meant for humans), we demonstrate empirical, non-anthropomorphic alternatives that remain under-explored yet offer promising directions for LLM research and development.

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Cited by 4 Pith papers

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