2026/03/10 by Jeremy Foote, Loizos Bitsikokos, Hitesh Goel +1 · 1 voice
Computer Science · Social Sciences · Medicine · #AI in Service Interactions #Ethics and Social Impacts of AI #Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare and Education
paper · doi:10.5117/ccr2026.2.5.foot
openalex publication_date 2026/03/10 · openalex created_date 2026/03/12 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/22
LLM-based generative AI agents are the first autonomous technologies that can act as true conversational partners. Communication researchers and others have already begun to explore the influence of AI conversations on their interlocutors. We present a methodological framework and software tool for conducting field experiments with AI agents on Reddit. The Reddit Conversational Laboratory is Python-based software that identifies potential participants, messages and consents them, and conducts conversational experiments with researcher-designed AI chatbots. In addition to storing all conversations, the software can also record participant behavior before and after conversations. In this paper, we outline design principles, best practices for using the tool, and possibilities for future extensions.