A prompt is the original input provided to a generative AI tool in order to generate a response. As the use of generative AI has spread, prompt engineering has emerged as a term for the many strategies and frameworks that can be employed when writing prompts. OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, provides suggestions on how to engineer effective prompts in their OpenAI Prompt Engineering Guide.
Prompt engineering is an iterative process, meaning that your first attempt may not give you the desired results, but you can revise and refine your prompt until the AI tool provides the information you need. UNC English professor Dan Anderson provides tips for how to accomplish this, along with examples, in his video, AI Prompting and Thinking.
Generally, it's helpful to be as specific as possible when writing a prompt to avoid receiving inaccurate or irrelevant information. A common approach is specify in the prompt that the generative AI is to take on a certain role, such as that of a writer, educator, or researcher, then have it present the information in a specific form such as a summary, syllabus, etc. Harvard University Information Technology goes into detail about this technique in Getting started with prompts for text-based Generative AI tools.
Leo Lo, a librarian and professor at the University of New Mexico, has developed another popular strategy for prompt engineering known as the CLEAR Framework1. It encourages users of generative AI to construct prompts that are Concise, Logical, Explicit, Adaptive, and Reflective.
1Lo, L. S. (2023). The clear path: A framework for enhancing information literacy through prompt engineering. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 49(4), 102720. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2023.102720