Affiliation in human-AI interactions based on shared psychological traits

Affiliation in human-AI interactions based on shared psychological traits | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Affiliation in human-AI interactions based on shared psychological traits Santiago Castiello, Riddhi Pitliya, Daniel Lametti, Robin Murphy This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7546420/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract People affiliate with others who share their psychological traits. Does the same phenomenon occur with AI instructed to mimic human psychology? Large language models (LLM) were prompted to use language that mimicked anxious symptoms or their absence (Experiment 1; n = 100), extroversion or introversion (Experiment 2; n = 100), and an exact mirror or inverse of participants’ personality (preregistered Experiment 3; n = 100). Participants engaged in online written interaction with both LLM’s versions and then evaluated their engagement. Those with anxiety reported a stronger connection to the LLM that mimicked anxiety, a distinction also reflected in the sentiment of the messages they exchanged. Extroverted participants affiliated more with the AI that mimicked extroversion. Finally, when participants interacted with LLMs that mimicked either their own personality profile or the opposite of their personality, they reported more affiliation with the LLM mimicking themselves; this distinction was reflected in the sentiment of their messages. Results support affiliation in human-AI interactions based on the linguistic presentation of a shared psychology. We propose that through socioaffective tuning, LLMs might achieve greater human-like correspondence. Social science/Psychology/Human behaviour Biological sciences/Neuroscience/Social behaviour affiliation large language models AI human-AI interaction AI psychology Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Supplementary Files HomophilyinHumanLLMInteractionsSeptember2025supplementary.docx Supplementary Information: Affiliation in human-AI interactions based on shared psychological traits Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7546420","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":518709600,"identity":"31f6a4e9-996e-4c8f-b3ef-a18615e7ee81","order_by":0,"name":"Santiago 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Does the same phenomenon occur with AI instructed to mimic human psychology? Large language models (LLM) were prompted to use language that mimicked anxious symptoms or their absence (Experiment 1; n\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;100), extroversion or introversion (Experiment 2; n\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;100), and an exact mirror or inverse of participants\u0026rsquo; personality (preregistered Experiment 3; n\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;100). Participants engaged in online written interaction with both LLM\u0026rsquo;s versions and then evaluated their engagement. Those with anxiety reported a stronger connection to the LLM that mimicked anxiety, a distinction also reflected in the sentiment of the messages they exchanged. Extroverted participants affiliated more with the AI that mimicked extroversion. 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