Attitudes of Catholic Clergies to the Application of ChatGPT in Unite Religious Communities
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsBasically, the application is exciting. The methodology is good and the inclusion of many references is really exceptional. There are a few things that would make the article stronger.
It is not clear from the article why Catholic clergy were interviewed. Why was this choice made and what does the author hope to gain from it? Is it to show a typological institutional view of chatbots? Or is it more a theoretical categorisation of the profession - in the sense of: this is how clergy think? This could easily be adjusted on page three, in the last section of the introduction: it would be good to show the context of justification in more detail. It would also be helpful if the author's interest in precisely this question were made a little more clear. Chapter 2, in my opinion, needs the most revision. Here is a list of where and for what chatbots are used everywhere. However, the different parts of the text seem to be disconnected: it reads like a list. It would be very helpful if the author could improve the reader's orientation and thus better show what the argumentation is supposed to lead to. In chapter 3, it would also be useful to indicate the coding paradigm or to write a sentence about how the data was analysed. The conclusion again shows the author's strong interest and positive attitude towards chatbots. A separate statement, perhaps introduced in the introduction and included and discussed here, would be helpful here. This would make the author's views more explicit and the article would be easier to categorise.
Author Response
Thank you very much for your in-depth review.
1.In the introduction, we introduced an extensive passage that explains the reason for interviewing clerics and the authors' approach to the chatbot.
Our objective in choosing Catholic clergy for our interviews was to investigate a unique perspective on the incorporation of chatbots within a historically traditional and prominent institution. There are two main causes that drive this decision. Initially, our objective was to offer a typological institutional viewpoint on chatbots. Catholic clergy, who have the greatest influence on the functioning of religious communities in Poland and are well versed in church doctrine, provide valuable perspectives on integrating chatbots into established organizational frameworks. Their viewpoints emphasize the possibilities and difficulties of implementing novel technologies in settings where customs and power structures are firmly established. Furthermore, the study seeks to attain a theoretical classification of the occupation. Through an analysis of the perceptions and interactions of clergy with chatbots, we can classify their attitudes and approaches, which may vary dramatically from those in more secular or technologically advanced domains. This classification improves our comprehension of professional attitudes towards the adoption of technology in different industries.
- In chapter two with a slightly modified title, we have made some changes that clarify the comments about chatbots in education and management.
The title reads: The use of chatbots in professional life and religious communities
The addition introduced at the beginning of the chapter.
“For many years now, churches have increasingly turned to the tools used in modern religious education in their activities (Karakostantaki, and Stavrianos 2021; Chorna 2023). The use of these tools increased after restrictions were placed on community life during the Covid- 19 pandemic (Cooper et. al. 2021; Holleman et al. 2022). Churches are not shying away from the use of modern solutions used in management (Sherman and Devlin 2000; Olipas et. al. 2021). We are witnessing the adoption of modern information and communication technologies, which contributes to the growth of religious communities. Of course, that the level of adoption of modern technologies depends on countries, individual church groups and their budgets (Bolu 2012). So it is understandable that we are analyzing the use of chatbots in modern education and management”.
- At the end of chapter two is another excerpt.
“The literature on the subject does not abound with texts on the use of chatbots by church communities. However, it is difficult to say whether religious communities will reach for these tools specifically, just as they use experiences from education and management in their activities”.
- In chapter four, we introduced the following text:
“The key that guided the analysis of the materials obtained was the need to gain knowledge about the potential use of chatbots in the functioning of the Catholic religious community, not forgetting the risks that arise from their widespread availability. Given that churches have tended to approach new technologies with caution, and then adopt and use them in practice. Nvivo software was used for the analysis in the paper”.
- We added one passage in the conclusion that shows the authors' attitude towards chatbots:
“The article's positive attitude towards the issue stems from a determination to connect the improvements in technology with their real-world implementation in various institutional settings. The study provides a detailed viewpoint on the perception and usage of chatbots in contexts that are not usually linked with rapid technology advancements, with a specific focus on Catholic clergy. This approach not only enhances the existing body of knowledge on chatbots but also offers practical insights for developers and policymakers seeking to adopt similar technology in comparable institutional contexts”.
Bolu, C. A. 2012. The church in the contemporary world: Information and communication technology in church communication for growth: A case study, Journal of Media and Communication Studies, Vol. 4, Issue 4, 80-94. DOI: 10.5897/JMCS11.087.
Chorna, V. 2023. The problems and the perspectives of modern religious education in Swedish primary schools. Environment and Social Psychology, Vol. 8, Issue 3, https://doi.org/10.54517/esp.v8i3.1686.
Karakostantaki, E., Stavrianos, K. 2021. The use of ICT in teaching religious education in primary school. Education and Information Technologies Vol. 26, Issue 6, 3231–3250, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-020-10417-8
Holleman, A., Roso, J., & Chaves, M. (2022). Religious congregations’ technological and financial capacities on the eve of the COVID-19 pandemic. Review of Religious Research, Vol. 64, Issue 1, 163-188, https://doi.org/10.1007/s13644-021-00477-8.
Cooper, A. P., Jormanainen, I., Shipepe, A., & Sutinen, E. (2021). Faith communities online: Christian churches' reactions to the COVID-19 outbreak. International Journal of Web Based Communities, Vol. 17, Issue 2, 99-119. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJWBC.2021.114453.
Sherman, Ann, and James F. Devlin. 2000. American and British clergy attitudes towards marketing activities: A comparative study. Service Industries Journal Vol. 20, Issue 4, 47–61. https://doi.org/10.1080/02642060000000046.
Olipas, C. N. P., Sawit, R. C. M., & Esperon, R. M. 2021. The design and assessment of a church records and information management system. International Journal of Research and Innovation in Applied Science, Vol. 6, Issue 1, 48-52. DOI: 10.51584/IJRIAS
Reviewer 2 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsThe areas that need attention are written in bold in the report attached.
Comments for author File: 
Comments.pdf
Author Response
Thank you very much for your in-depth review.
