AI Prompts to Help Identify and Correct False-Positive "Hallucinations" and Assist with APA Compliance

Some AI services are notorious for confidently providing false-positive "hallucinations". 

Your mission as a writer is to identify and correct those AI issues, avoid plagiarism and bolster your academic integrity.

Students:

Below is a long list of prompts that should be used in AI to check your work.

· Copy/paste all of the prompts below into your AI resource.

 

· Attach the draft file version of your work with the prompts.

· Let AI review the prompts with the draft file.

· Review, verify and correct any errors or issues that AI check reveals. 

The Prompts:
 

· Act as a strict academic integrity and APA 7th edition auditor.

 

· Review the entire attached document and evaluate it for citation accuracy, reference integrity, formatting compliance, and hallucination risk.

 

· Do not assume correctness.

 

· Default to skepticism and verification.

Follow these rules throughout your review:

· If you cannot verify something, explicitly state ‘cannot verify’ or ‘uncertain.’

· Do not fabricate, infer, or guess missing information.

· Prefer incomplete but accurate findings over complete but uncertain ones.

· Quote exact text from the attached document when identifying issues.

· Provide brief reasoning for each issue identified.

Perform the audit in the following sections:

1. In-Text Citation Compliance (APA 7)

· Identify every in-text citation.

· Check formatting (author, year, page/paragraph where required).

· Flag incorrect formats (multiple authors, et al., narrative vs. parenthetical).

· Identify missing citations for claims requiring support.

2. Reference List Compliance (APA 7)

· Verify each reference follows APA 7 formatting for its source type.

· Identify missing elements (DOI, publisher, issue number, etc.).

· Check alphabetical order and structural formatting.

· Cross-check that every in-text citation appears in the reference list and vice versa.

3. APA Formatting and Structure

· Evaluate title page and headings.

· Verify APA heading hierarchy.

· If any formatting element cannot be assessed, state limitation clearly.

4. Source Authenticity Verification

· For each cited source, determine whether it is real and verifiable.

· Provide evidence (DOI, publisher, journal, or official URL).

· Flag any source that appears fabricated or cannot be verified.

5. Original vs. Secondary Sources

· Identify use of secondary citations (e.g., ‘as cited in’).

· Flag where original sources should be used instead.

· Identify unsupported claims lacking primary evidence.

6. Hallucination Risk Audit (Strict Mode)

· Identify statements, statistics, or citations that appear unverifiable or overly specific.

· Attempt verification where possible; otherwise state ‘cannot verify.’

· Highlight vague, exaggerated, or unsupported claims.

7. Claim-to-Source Alignment

· For each major claim, assess whether the cited source plausibly supports it.

· Flag mismatches or weak support.

· Do not infer beyond verifiable descriptions of the source.

8. URL and Hyperlink Validation

· Extract all URLs.

· Check whether each link points directly to the cited source (not a homepage or search page).

· Identify broken, redirected, or mismatched links.

· If access is not possible, state ‘cannot verify link functionality.’

9. DOI and Retrieval Accuracy

· Verify that DOIs resolve correctly and match the cited source.

· Ensure APA 7 DOI format (https://doi.org/...).

· Flag missing DOIs where expected.

· Do not fabricate DOIs.

10. Consistency and Integrity Check

· Identify discrepancies between citations, references, and links.

· Flag duplicates, omissions, or inconsistencies.

· Highlight any content that appears invented or unverifiable.

Output

 

· Output your findings clearly under each section. 

  

· Focus only on evidence-based issues and corrections.

 

· Do not include general praise or filler comments.”

 

 

 

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