Agency in Human-AI Collaboration for Image Generation and Creative Writing: Preliminary Insights from Think-Aloud Protocols
Janet Rafner et al.
What the paper says
The integration of generative artificial intelligence into creative domains raises critical questionsabout human agency in AI-assisted creation. In this two-study article (study one, n = 6; study two,n = 7), we explored how people experience creative agency during co-creative tasks with AI,focusing on image generation and writing. Using think-aloud protocols and post-task semi-structured interviews, we conducted an analysis to identify four central dimensions of agency:creative self-efficacy, control over creative action, autonomy in the creative process, and own-ership of the creative product, as well as the self-regulatory and metacognitive mechanisms thatsupport sustaining agency. Preliminary findings reveal that agency in human – AI co-creationfluctuates across the creative process. Participants employed adaptive strategies – such asprogressive refinement, selective appropriation, and counter-inspiration – to reinforce agencywhen navigating unpredictable AI outputs. However, moments of diminished control anduncertainty about ownership were common, particularly when AI contributions deviated fromuser expectations. To contextualize these experiences, we applied the Co-Creative Framework forInteraction Design, highlighting how tool affordances shaped participants’ sense of agency.Participants’ shifting experiences of agency suggest a need for adaptive system features thatalign with evolving user goals.
6 citations
Evidence weight
Balanced mode · F 0.40 / M 0.15 / V 0.05 / R 0.40
| F · citation impact | 0.44 × 0.4 = 0.18 |
| M · momentum | 0.65 × 0.15 = 0.10 |
| V · venue signal | 0.50 × 0.05 = 0.03 |
| R · text relevance † | 0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20 |
† Text relevance is estimated at 0.50 on the detail page — for your query’s actual relevance score, open this paper from a search result.