Think First, ChatGPT Later: Guiding Human–AI Collaboration for Learning Gains in Independent Human Creativity

Generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools such as ChatGPT can boost creative performance, but do these boosts translate into learning gains? This study examined whether the benefits of ChatGPT for creativity persist even when its assistance is removed, and how people can effectively use ChatGPT to enhance their learning and independent creativity. University students (N = 196) solved a creative product improvement task either independently (human-only group) or using ChatGPT freely (general-AI group) or using ChatGPT in a guided way (regulated-AI group). Specifically, the regulated-AI group used a novel “think first, ChatGPT later” approach—they first generated their own ideas, then collaborated with ChatGPT to improve, develop, and evaluate them. Thereafter, all groups independently solved a creative product invention task. On the first task, the general-AI group produced more creative solutions than the human-only and regulated-AI groups. But without ChatGPT assistance on the second task, the general-AI group’s creativity declined to levels comparable to the human-only group. In striking contrast, despite a lack of performance gains on the first task, the regulated-AI group outperformed both the human-only and general-AI groups in independent creativity on the second task. Process analyses revealed that the general-AI group most often simply dictated ChatGPT to directly generate the solutions. Conversely, the regulated-AI group more frequently collaborated with ChatGPT to improve their self-generated ideas, in turn mediating their later advantage over the general-AI group in independent originality. Thinking of one’s own ideas first, then collaborating with ChatGPT to improve them, promotes learning gains in independent human creativity.