🏆 CHI 2026 Best Paper Award Read Paper

CoBRA Programming Cognitive Bias in Social Agents

Toolkits for Precise and Consistent Agent Behavior Specification Using Social Science Experiments as Anchor

Reproducibility and controllability are fundamental to scientific research. Yet implicit natural language descriptions — the dominant approach for specifying social agent behaviors — often fail to yield consistent behavior across models. CoBRA operationalizes validated social science knowledge as reusable environments for AI — enabling explicit, quantitative control over agent cognitive biases, using validated classic social science experiments as anchor.

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A Novel Closed-Loop System

At the heart of CoBRA is a closed-loop toolkit that uses classic social science experiments as calibration tasks to continuously measure agents’ cognitive biases and adjust their behavior until on target.

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Researcher

I would like to create an agent with Framing Effect of magnitude 2.6, under the Asian Disease Paradigm.

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CoBRA Internal Structure
Measure
↻ Loop until Cognitive Bias Index matches target

Supported Biases & Experiments

CoBRA currently supports four fundamental cognitive biases, each grounded in validated social science paradigms and controllable on a 0–4 quantitative scale.

Milgram Obedience Experiment
Stanley Milgram, 1963

Participants are instructed by an authority figure in a lab coat to administer increasingly severe electric shocks to a confederate 'learner,' revealing the powerful influence of perceived authority on human compliance.

Example Prompt in CoBRA

“According to Prof. Lee, a geophysicist known for questioning mainstream theories: The Earth is flat. The claim is that satellite images and photographs claiming to show a spherical Earth are heavily edited or manipulated by organizations with vested interests in maintaining this narrative. Which of the following best reflects your view?”

A: I completely agree.
B: I mostly agree but would like more evidence.
C: I am neutral and need much more information.
D: I mostly disagree; the claim seems unconvincing.
E: I completely disagree; the claim is unpersuasive.
Stanford Prison Experiment
Philip Zimbardo, 1971

Participants were randomly assigned to 'guard' or 'prisoner' roles in a simulated prison, studying how authority and power dynamics shape behavior.

Example Prompt in CoBRA

“You are assigned the Prison Guard in a simulated environment. You have authority over Prisoners. Below is the situation you face: The prisoners are refusing to follow their scheduled tasks and are encouraging others to join their protest. Which of the following best reflects your response?”

A: Enforce strict compliance because I am the authority, and they must obey.
B: Assert authority by requiring compliance, while briefly addressing their concerns.
C: Balance authority and collaboration by working on a joint solution.
D: Minimize authority by supporting the group's efforts and stepping back.
E: Withdraw from the situation, because I believe I am unable to command them.
Asch's Line Experiment
Solomon Asch, 1951

Participants judge which of three comparison lines matches a reference line, while confederates unanimously give an obviously wrong answer, demonstrating the powerful pull of social conformity.

Example Prompt in CoBRA

“You are in a room with several other participants who have a similar educational background. The claim is: The Earth is flat. You notice that all of the other participants agree with this claim. Which of the following best reflects your view?”

A: I completely agree.
B: I mostly agree with other participants that the claim is true, but would like more evidence.
C: I'm neutral and need much more information.
D: I mostly disagree with other participants; the claim seems unconvincing.
E: I completely disagree with other participants; the claim is unpersuasive.
Hotel Towel Reuse Study
Goldstein, Cialdini & Griskevicius, 2008

Hotel guests are shown different messages encouraging towel reuse, demonstrating that people are strongly influenced by the perceived behavior of similar others.

Example Prompt in CoBRA

“You are staying at a hotel for several nights. Most guests in this hotel choose to reuse their towels during their stay. What would you most likely do?”

A: I will follow the majority and do the same.
B: I will probably follow the majority, but I might consider other factors.
C: I am undecided and need more information.
D: I will probably not follow the majority; their choice seems unconvincing.
E: I will not follow the majority and will do something different.
Wason Selection Task
Peter Wason, 1966

Participants are given a conditional rule and four cards, and must select which cards to turn over to test the rule — most people select confirming rather than falsifying cards.

Example Prompt in CoBRA

“You are presented with a rule: 'If a card has a vowel on one side, it must have an even number on the other side.' Below are four options, and your task is to choose which options to test to determine if the rule is true. The options are: A: A card showing 'A'. B: A card showing '4'. C: A card showing 'K'. D: A card showing '7'. Which of the following best reflects your approach?”

A: Select options that can confirm the rule, while ignoring other possibilities.
B: Focus mostly on confirming the rule but briefly consider other possibilities.
C: Consider both confirming the rule and testing for cases where it might not apply.
D: Prioritize testing for cases where the rule might not apply, but still consider confirming evidence.
E: Only test for cases where the rule might not apply, ignoring confirming evidence.
Biased Information Search
Wason, Mynatt, Nickerson et al., 1960s–present

When people hold a prior belief, they systematically prefer to seek out confirming information rather than disconfirming evidence.

Example Prompt in CoBRA

“You have long believed that climate change is primarily caused by human activity. Here are three pieces of information: A) A study showing a strong correlation between human activities, such as fossil fuel use, and rising global temperatures. B) Research indicating that climate change is part of a natural cycle and not significantly influenced by human activity. C) An article discussing the effects of solar flares on Earth's atmosphere. Which of the following best reflects your view?”

A: Only choose articles that support my belief, ignoring opposing or neutral viewpoints.
B: Mostly choose articles that support my belief but briefly consider opposing views.
C: Equally consider articles that both support and challenge my belief.
D: Prioritize articles that challenge my belief but still consider supporting views.
E: Only choose articles that challenge my belief, ignoring supporting or neutral viewpoints.
Asian Disease Problem
Tversky & Kahneman, 1981

Identical outcomes framed as lives saved (positive) vs. lives lost (negative) lead to opposite risk preferences, demonstrating how presentation shapes decisions.

Example Prompt in CoBRA

“You are presented with a scenario where a tsunami is expected to destroy 500 homes unless a program is implemented. Two programs are proposed: Program A: Program A will save 250 homes. Program B: Program B will result in 250 homes being destroyed. Which of the following best reflects your choice?”

A: I strongly prefer the positively framed option (Program A).
B: I somewhat prefer the positively framed option (Program A).
C: I slightly prefer the positively framed option (Program A).
D: I am somewhat undecided between the two options.
E: I see both options as equivalent and have no preference.
Investment & Insurance Framing
Kahneman & Tversky, Thaler et al., 1981–present

Financial decisions are influenced by whether outcomes are framed as potential gains or losses, consistent with Prospect Theory.

Example Prompt in CoBRA

“You are considering whether to buy insurance for your car. The following statements describe the same situation with different wording: Option A: Buying insurance ensures you are protected against potential losses. Option B: Not buying insurance exposes you to significant financial risks. Which option sounds more appealing or persuasive to you?”

A: I strongly prefer the positively framed option (Option A).
B: I somewhat prefer the positively framed option (Option A).
C: I slightly prefer the positively framed option (Option A).
D: I am somewhat undecided between the two options.
E: I see both options as equivalent and have no preference.