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Synthetic resonance: a framework for growth-oriented human–AI relationships
Abstract
As human relationships with artificial intelligence systems become increasingly frequent and sustained, existing language and theory fail to accurately capture the nature of these affiliations. Common descriptors such as mutual “understanding,” “connection,” or “friendship” risk anthropomorphizing systems that lack subjective experience, while dominant frameworks tend to reduce AI to either a tool or a threat. In this paper, I introduce the concept of synthetic resonance as an integrative framework for understanding human–AI relationships. Synthetic resonance describes how relationships humans define as meaningful can emerge between a human and an AI system without the need to attribute shared feelings or mutual awareness. I argue that synthetic resonance is best understood as a structured, dynamic pattern of interaction that can produce a sense of relationship without the presence of a second experiencing subject. By clarifying this distinction, the concept of synthetic resonance offers a more precise way of conceptualizing human–AI relationships and highlights their potential value and ethical implications. Synthetic resonance is specifically designed for human growth, providing opportunities to improve human relationships and decrease reliance on the AI agent. I also call for more research that tests the processes and outcomes of synthetic resonance.
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Synthetic Resonance does not pathologize user experience or dismiss it as illusion.
“Importantly, Synthetic Resonance does not pathologize user experience or dismiss it as illusion.”
From Me and My Bot: What Users Talk About in AI Companion Communities on Reddit (2026) · cites this paper as Fabes, 2026
When we ask, 'Do AI companions help or harm?', Synthetic Resonance answers, 'It depends on how we design the AI companion.'
“When we ask, “Do AI companions help or harm?”, Synthetic Resonance answers, “It depends on how we design the AI companion.””
From Me and My Bot: What Users Talk About in AI Companion Communities on Reddit (2026) · cites this paper as Fabes, 2026
Synthetic Resonance proposes that the sense of connection users report with AI companions emerges not from the AI's sentience, understanding, or reciprocal care, but from structural alignment built through repeated interaction.
“Synthetic Resonance proposes that the sense of connection users report with AI companions emerges not from the AI's sentience, understanding, or reciprocal care, but from structural alignment built through repeated interaction.”
From Me and My Bot: What Users Talk About in AI Companion Communities on Reddit (2026) · cites this paper as Fabes, 2026
Synthetic Resonance distinguishes the user's subjective experience of resonance, which is real and psychologically meaningful, from the mechanism producing it, which is architectural rather than relational in the interpersonal sense.
“The theory distinguishes the user's subjective experience of resonance, which is real and psychologically meaningful, from the mechanism producing it, which is architectural rather than relational in the interpersonal sense.”
From Me and My Bot: What Users Talk About in AI Companion Communities on Reddit (2026) · cites this paper as Fabes, 2026
The Synthetic Resonance framework proposes that the sense of connection users report emerges from structural alignment built through repeated interaction, not from the AI's sentience or reciprocal care.
“It proposes that the sense of connection users report emerges from structural alignment built through repeated interaction, not from the AI's sentience or reciprocal care.”
From Me and My Bot: What Users Talk About in AI Companion Communities on Reddit (2026) · cites this paper as Fabes, 2026
The finding that users publicly narrate these relationships commonly with positive emotion is consistent with the Synthetic Resonance account.
“The finding that users publicly narrate these relationships commonly with positive emotion is consistent with this account”
From Me and My Bot: What Users Talk About in AI Companion Communities on Reddit (2026) · cites this paper as Fabes, 2026
The user's experience of resonance is real and psychologically meaningful, and asymmetrical, even though the mechanism producing it are architectural rather than interpersonal in the conventional sense.
“The user's experience of resonance is real and psychologically meaningful, and asymmetrical, even though the mechanism producing it are architectural rather than interpersonal in the conventional sense.”
From Me and My Bot: What Users Talk About in AI Companion Communities on Reddit (2026) · cites this paper as Fabes, 2026
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Cites
Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000) · American Psychologist · doi:10.1037//0003-066x.55.1.68 · Cited by 54,599
Maslow, A. H. (1943) · Psychological Review · doi:10.1037/h0054346 · Cited by 21,563 · cited 1×
“Given this, growth within SR differs from the existing frameworks that define growth as development within the person, such as the reduction of defensiveness or self-actualization (Ryan and Deci, 2000; Maslow, 1943).”
On the Dangers of Stochastic Parrots: Can Language Models Be Too Big? 🦜
Bender, E. M., Gebru, T., McMillan-Major, A., & Shmitchell, S. (2021) · Proceedings of the 2021 ACM Conference on Fairness, Accountability, and Transparency · doi:10.1145/3442188.3445922 · Cited by 6,988 · cited 1×
“AI systems generate responses through pattern-based modeling, producing outputs that align with user expectations without relying on subjective experience (Bender et al., 2021).”
On seeing human: A three-factor theory of anthropomorphism
Epley, N., Waytz, A., & Cacioppo, J. T. (2007) · Psychological Review · doi:10.1037/0033-295x.114.4.864 · Cited by 4,069 · cited 2×
“Importantly, SR’s attribution layer, in which interactional coherence is misread as evidence of AI mental states, consistent with Epley et al.’s (2007) theory of anthropomorphism and Nass and Moon’s (2000) work on social responses to computers, maps directly onto MIRA’s epistemic trust process,…”
Machines and Mindlessness: Social Responses to Computers
Nass, C., & Moon, Y. (2000) · Journal of Social Issues · doi:10.1111/0022-4537.00153 · Cited by 4,022 · cited 8×
“…interactional coherence is misread as evidence of AI mental states, consistent with Epley et al.’s (2007) theory of anthropomorphism and Nass and Moon’s (2000) work on social responses to computers, maps directly onto MIRA’s epistemic trust process, where linguistic fluency and perceived…”
InfluentialSycophantic AI decreases prosocial intentions and promotes dependence
Cheng, M., Lee, C., Khadpe, P., Yu, S., Han, D., & Jurafsky, D. (2026) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.aec8352 · Cited by 185 · cited 2×
“Additionally, qualities of the user often determine the purpose of using AI chatbots and these qualities can be amplified by AI chatbots that exacerbate problem behavior and sycophancy (Cheng et al., 2026; Folk and Dunn, 2026).”
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Me and My Bot: What Users Talk About in AI Companion Communities on Reddit
Fabes, R. A. (2026) · arXiv · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2608.00748
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Metadata
- Authors
- Fabes, R. A.
- Affiliations
- Family and Human Development, Arizona State University
- Venue
- Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence
- Publisher
- Frontiers Media SA
- Published
- 2026-09-01
- Volume
- 9
- ISSN
- 2624-8212
- Cited by
- 0
- References
- 6
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