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"If the Machine Is As Good As Me, Then What Use Am I?" -- How the Use of ChatGPT Changes Young Professionals' Perception of Productivity and Accomplishment

Charlotte Kobiella, Yarhy Said Flores López, Fiona Draxler, Albrecht Schmidt

TL;DR

This paper investigates how the use of ChatGPT reshapes young professionals' perceptions of productivity and accomplishment in knowledge work. It employs a two-phase approach: a pre-study to identify use cases and a two-week diary study with 21 participants to capture daily reflections, complemented by exit interviews and thematic analysis. The findings show that ChatGPT can boost productivity and sense of accomplishment by enabling rapid idea generation and efficient task completion, yet risks arise from diminished ownership, insufficient challenge, and variable output quality, especially in research tasks requiring high validation. The work highlights task-dependent suitability, describes best practices for prompting and post-processing, and discusses implications for human–AI collaboration and interface design to sustain personal agency and meaningful work.

Abstract

Large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT have been widely adopted in work contexts. We explore the impact of ChatGPT on young professionals' perception of productivity and sense of accomplishment. We collected LLMs' main use cases in knowledge work through a preliminary study, which served as the basis for a two-week diary study with 21 young professionals reflecting on their ChatGPT use. Findings indicate that ChatGPT enhanced some participants' perceptions of productivity and accomplishment by enabling greater creative output and satisfaction from efficient tool utilization. Others experienced decreased perceived productivity and accomplishment, driven by a diminished sense of ownership, perceived lack of challenge, and mediocre results. We found that the suitability of task delegation to ChatGPT varies strongly depending on the task nature. It's especially suitable for comprehending broad subject domains, generating creative solutions, and uncovering new information. It's less suitable for research tasks due to hallucinations, which necessitate extensive validation.

"If the Machine Is As Good As Me, Then What Use Am I?" -- How the Use of ChatGPT Changes Young Professionals' Perception of Productivity and Accomplishment

TL;DR

This paper investigates how the use of ChatGPT reshapes young professionals' perceptions of productivity and accomplishment in knowledge work. It employs a two-phase approach: a pre-study to identify use cases and a two-week diary study with 21 participants to capture daily reflections, complemented by exit interviews and thematic analysis. The findings show that ChatGPT can boost productivity and sense of accomplishment by enabling rapid idea generation and efficient task completion, yet risks arise from diminished ownership, insufficient challenge, and variable output quality, especially in research tasks requiring high validation. The work highlights task-dependent suitability, describes best practices for prompting and post-processing, and discusses implications for human–AI collaboration and interface design to sustain personal agency and meaningful work.

Abstract

Large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT have been widely adopted in work contexts. We explore the impact of ChatGPT on young professionals' perception of productivity and sense of accomplishment. We collected LLMs' main use cases in knowledge work through a preliminary study, which served as the basis for a two-week diary study with 21 young professionals reflecting on their ChatGPT use. Findings indicate that ChatGPT enhanced some participants' perceptions of productivity and accomplishment by enabling greater creative output and satisfaction from efficient tool utilization. Others experienced decreased perceived productivity and accomplishment, driven by a diminished sense of ownership, perceived lack of challenge, and mediocre results. We found that the suitability of task delegation to ChatGPT varies strongly depending on the task nature. It's especially suitable for comprehending broad subject domains, generating creative solutions, and uncovering new information. It's less suitable for research tasks due to hallucinations, which necessitate extensive validation.
Paper Structure (32 sections, 2 figures, 1 table)

This paper contains 32 sections, 2 figures, 1 table.

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Related Work
  3. Productivity in Knowledge Work
  4. Self-Efficacy and Personal Accomplishment
  5. Methods Overview
  6. Phase 1: Pre-study Methods & Results
  7. Methods
  8. Results
  9. Phase 2: Diary Study Methods
  10. Participants
  11. Study Setup & Procedure
  12. Results of the Diary Study
  13. Drivers for Sense of Accomplishment
  14. Barriers to Sense of Accomplishment
  15. Drivers for Perceived Productivity
  16. ...and 17 more sections

Figures (2)

  • Figure 1: The methodology overview outlines the progression from initial use cases and research questions to the themes identified from the results of our diary study.
  • Figure 2: Likert scale ratings of diary study entries, reflecting varied levels of accomplishment and productivity as self-reported by participants. The chart quantifies participants' experiences, delineating them into high, medium, and low categories for each sentiment.