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Autori principali: Zhi, Jiayin, Long, Hoyt, So, Richard Jean, Lee, Mina
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2026
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Accesso online:https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.06855
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author Zhi, Jiayin
Long, Hoyt
So, Richard Jean
Lee, Mina
author_facet Zhi, Jiayin
Long, Hoyt
So, Richard Jean
Lee, Mina
contents AI demonstrates unprecedented reasoning capabilities, but its increasing integration into human reasoning via automated reading and summarization has provoked debate about its use for cultural interpretation. Close reading -- the practice of understanding, analyzing, and critiquing cultural texts for pleasure -- is a skill at the core of such interpretation, traditionally being seen as exclusive to humans. To test AI's impact on close reading, both in terms of interpretative performance and pleasure, we conducted a preregistered randomized experiment (n=400) investigating the impact of AI assistance by presenting single or multiple AI interpretations, on close reading poems, compared to no AI assistance. We found that single AI interpretation boosted both performance and pleasure, while multiple AI interpretations only improved performance. Further exploration revealed a trade-off: participants who heavily relied on AI showed better performance on the task but lower pleasure. Our results contribute to discussion on whether and how to calibrate AI assistance for cultural interpretation: "less is more."
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2603_06855
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle What Does AI Do for Cultural Interpretation? A Randomized Experiment on Close Reading Poems with Exposure to AI Interpretation
Zhi, Jiayin
Long, Hoyt
So, Richard Jean
Lee, Mina
Human-Computer Interaction
AI demonstrates unprecedented reasoning capabilities, but its increasing integration into human reasoning via automated reading and summarization has provoked debate about its use for cultural interpretation. Close reading -- the practice of understanding, analyzing, and critiquing cultural texts for pleasure -- is a skill at the core of such interpretation, traditionally being seen as exclusive to humans. To test AI's impact on close reading, both in terms of interpretative performance and pleasure, we conducted a preregistered randomized experiment (n=400) investigating the impact of AI assistance by presenting single or multiple AI interpretations, on close reading poems, compared to no AI assistance. We found that single AI interpretation boosted both performance and pleasure, while multiple AI interpretations only improved performance. Further exploration revealed a trade-off: participants who heavily relied on AI showed better performance on the task but lower pleasure. Our results contribute to discussion on whether and how to calibrate AI assistance for cultural interpretation: "less is more."
title What Does AI Do for Cultural Interpretation? A Randomized Experiment on Close Reading Poems with Exposure to AI Interpretation
topic Human-Computer Interaction
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.06855