AI and Machine Learning Terminology in Medicine, Psychology, and Social Sciences: Tutorial and Practical Recommendations

Recent applications of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning in medicine, psychology, and social sciences have led to common terminological confusions. In this paper, we review emerging evidence from systematic reviews documenting widespread misuse of key terms, particularly "prediction" being applied to studies merely demonstrating association or retrospective analysis. We clarify when "prediction" should be used and recommend using "prospective prediction" for future prediction; explain validation procedures essential for model generalizability; discuss overfitting and generalization in machine learning and traditional regression methods; clarify relationships between features, independent variables, predictors, risk factors, and causal factors; and clarify the hierarchical relationship between AI, machine learning, deep learning, large language models, and generative AI. We provide evidence-based recommendations for terminology use that can facilitate clearer communication among researchers from different disciplines and between the research community and the public, ultimately advancing the rigorous application of AI in medicine, psychology, and social sciences.