The Cognitive-Communicative Potential of Artificial Intelligence in Modelling Professional Language Discourse in Higher Education

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to examine the cognitive-communicative potential of artificial intelligence (AI) in modelling language situations during the formation of professional English-language discourse in higher education, with particular reference to students of economic specialisations. The study explores the role of intelligent technologies as a cognitive-communicative tool that complements traditional foreign language instruction by enabling the staged development of lexical, grammatical and discursive competences, as well as the simulation of authentic professional communication contexts. It is argued that, at the current stage of digital development, the complete replacement of the lecturer by auto mated systems is neither feasible nor pedagogically justified, as the educator continues to play a central role in facilitating creative classroom interaction while taking into account instructional objectives, cognitive capacities, and individual learner characteristics. The effectiveness of AI-based systems in developing professionally oriented economic vocabulary, syntactic structures, discourse markers and terminological units that ensure coherence, cohesion, and argumentation in professional economic texts is analysed. The findings indicate that interactive platforms enable semantic and pragmatic analysis of linguistic units, identification of recurrent errors, clarification of terminological nuances and adaptation of instructional content to learners’ levels of language proficiency. Particular emphasis is placed on the development of written and oral communicative competence, including the production of analytical essays, reports and presentations, participation in business negotiations and engagement in role-based communicative scenarios incorporating professional terminology. The article further examines practical aspects of implementing contemporary AI-driven platforms, including ChatGPT, Perplexity AI, Writesonic, Microsoft Copilot, LingQ, Rosetta Stone AI and speech recognition technologies (Speechify and Microsoft Azure Speech), which facilitate the integration of language practice with the cognitive processing of professional content. The use of these tools is shown to enhance student motivation and engagement, foster critical thinking and learner autonomy and support the adaptation of the educational process to individual cognitive profiles. The synthesis of the research findings demonstrates that the integration of AI into the formation of professional dis course in higher education significantly enhances the effectiveness of language training, promotes the holistic development of cognitive and communicative competences and contributes to the preparation of competitive specialists capable of functioning effectively in a digitalised global environment.