The Psychology of Large Language Models
PSY 1409
Subject & Catalog Number
Course Information
Description
How was ChatGPT inspired by your brain? As the use of large language models (LLMs) grows in popularity and applicability to academics, and as we grapple with how and when to incorporate them into the research process, having a foundational understanding of LLMs is critical to ensuring we are careful interpreters of these new, powerful tools. In this course, we will study the development of LLMs and how they were inspired by findings in psychology, linguistics, and cognitive neuroscience. After delving into LLM architecture and functioning, we will debate practical and ethical questions about using LLMs in psychological research for coding, writing, summarizing papers, as well as the broader societal applications (e.g., whether using LLMs to teach content in primary schools will lead to a larger or smaller educational disparities). This course is not designed to teach you to code an LLM, but rather to help you understand the networks at a mechanistic level. We will use some code to illustrate theoretical concepts, but prior coding experience is not required.
Recommended Prep
The Psychology Department requires completion of Science of Living Systems 20 or Psychology 1 or the equivalent of introductory psychology (e.g. Psych AP=5 or IB =7 or Psyc S-1) and at least one foundational course from MCB/NEURO 80, PSY 11, PSY 14, PSY 15, PSY 16, or PSY 18 before enrolling in this course; or permission of instructor.
Available for Harvard Cross Registration
