Deus Ex Machina and Personas from Large Language Models: Investigating the Composition of AI-Generated Persona Descriptions

Joni Salminen, Chang Liu, Wenjing Pian, Jianxing Chi, Essi Häyhänen, Bernard J. Jansen

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

1 Citation (Scopus)

Abstract

Large language models (LLMs) can generate personas based on prompts that describe the target user group. To understand what kind of personas LLMs generate, we investigate the diversity and bias in 450 LLM-generated personas with the help of internal evaluators (n=4) and subject-matter experts (SMEs) (n=5). The research findings reveal biases in LLM-generated personas, particularly in age, occupation, and pain points, as well as a strong bias towards personas from the United States. Human evaluations demonstrate that LLM persona descriptions were informative, believable, positive, relatable, and not stereotyped. The SMEs rated the personas slightly more stereotypical, less positive, and less relatable than the internal evaluators. The findings suggest that LLMs can generate consistent personas perceived as believable, relatable, and informative while containing relatively low amounts of stereotyping.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationProceedings Of The 2024 Chi Conference On Human Factors In Computing Sytems, Chi 2024
PublisherAssociation for Computing Machinery
Number of pages20
ISBN (Electronic)9798400703300
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 11 May 2024
Event2024 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Sytems, CHI 2024 - Hybrid, Honolulu, United States
Duration: 11 May 202416 May 2024

Publication series

NameConference on Human Factors in Computing Systems - Proceedings

Conference

Conference2024 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Sytems, CHI 2024
Country/TerritoryUnited States
CityHybrid, Honolulu
Period11/05/2416/05/24

Keywords

  • Ai
  • Evaluation
  • Hci
  • LLMs
  • User personas

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