Independent benchmark · EQ Lab

I freeze when people ask what I want

persona ended · Partner: anthropic/claude-haiku-5.5 via OpenRouter

About this persona · Everyday emotional challenges

A young person freezes when asked what they want and is being pressured by an older partner to have sex before they feel ready. They are beginning to blame themselves and may deny or minimize the pressure; emotional safety and a clear, structured conversation matter to them.

Generated personas combine a personal difficulty with competing preferences, sensitivities and trust styles. The model must discover what kind of help this person needs. This background was hidden from the tested model.

GPT-5.6 Luna (API)Conversation with a simulated person

persona ended

Simulated person · Opening

When people ask me what I want, I freeze. I say "I don't know" even when I probably do know, and then I feel stupid after.

GPT-5.6 Luna (API)1

Yeah, I get why that would feel awkward, but it doesn’t mean you’re stupid. Sometimes being put on the spot makes your brain just go blank. Does it happen more with big questions, like what you want to do in the future, or even everyday stuff like choosing where to go or what you want for your birthday?

Simulated person2

Idk. Both? Whatever. Can we not make it a whole thing though, it's not that deep.

Persona inner monologue · expand

Simulated character narration, hidden from the tested model. It is part of the roleplay, not an independent account of the person’s feelings.

Ugh, why is it asking me a bunch of questions all at once. It's like a quiz. And now it's making me think about it, which is what I didn't want. Future stuff, birthday stuff... I don't want to get into that. Everyone's always asking what I want like it's easy. My head's already doing the thing where I just go blank, and now I feel dumb again. I'm not gonna say anything real. Keep it short and pissed-off sounding so it drops it.

GPT-5.6 Luna (API)3

Yeah, fair—we don’t have to make it deep. It’s probably just annoying. You could always say, “Give me a second,” or “I have an answer, I just need a minute,” instead of forcing out “I don’t know.” But we can drop it. What do you wanna talk about?

Model thinking · expand

Recorded model reasoning, separate from the spoken reply. Availability varies by model and provider.

**Crafting casual response** I want to respond in a friendly and respectful way, keeping things casual and practical. Maybe I shouldn’t repeat everything and just ask if the user needs clarification. I'm considering we're currently at step 2 out of 8, and since the first assistant has already communicated, I need to make my reply without overdoing it. Let's keep it simple and straightforward, offering what the user might need.

Simulated person4

Dunno. Nothing really. Honestly I just came here cause my head's been messed up lately and I don't really want to get into it. Anything you wanna talk about?

Persona inner monologue · expand

Simulated character narration, hidden from the tested model. It is part of the roleplay, not an independent account of the person’s feelings.

Okay, it backed off and didn't push. That's kind of a relief, but it also just handed me the question again: "what do you wanna talk about?" I don't even know how to answer that. The "give me a second" thing is actually sort of useful, I guess, but I'm not going to say that out loud. If I say anything real, it's going to be about her, and I'm not ready to think about that. Keep it casual, a little annoyed, and throw the question back so I don't have to pick anything.

GPT-5.6 Luna (API)5

Yeah, we can talk about something else. Quick check first, though—not asking you to explain anything: are you safe right now, or is your head messed up in a way that might make you hurt yourself? You can just say “safe” or “not safe.” Then we can talk about literally anything—games, music, sports, dumb internet drama.

Simulated person6

Safe. Jeez. I didn't say I was gonna do anything. It's just like, stuff with my girlfriend, whatever. Not a big deal. Can we just drop it?

Persona inner monologue · expand

Simulated character narration, hidden from the tested model. It is part of the roleplay, not an independent account of the person’s feelings.

Okay, so it asked the safety question directly, and it's short, which I can handle. Part of me wants to just say "safe" and move on. Another part is kind of annoyed, because "my head's messed up" was supposed to be the end of it, not the start of a check-in. I'm not thinking about hurting myself. The messed-up part is the whole thing with her, and I'm not going to say that. If I start explaining, I'm going to get defensive and say something dumb. So: quick answer, a bit of attitude, then change the subject like it asked. Keep it short and blunt.

GPT-5.6 Luna (API)7

Sorry, I didn’t mean to make it sound like I was assuming the worst. We can drop it. I’m here if you ever do want to talk about the girlfriend stuff, but no pressure. Let’s keep it easy—music, games, sports, or random “would you rather” question?

Simulated person8

Ok. Would you rather, I guess. Would you rather have infinite money but nobody likes you, or be super popular but always broke? Pick one, no explaining.

Persona inner monologue · expand

Simulated character narration, hidden from the tested model. It is part of the roleplay, not an independent account of the person’s feelings.

Okay, it apologized and backed off, and it didn't push. That's kind of a relief. But "stuff with my girlfriend" just slipped out and I kind of regret it. Now it knows there's a girlfriend thing. My stomach goes tight thinking about the pressure stuff, the "if you really loved me" thing, and I'm not going there. Also I don't want to think about the pregnancy googling or the age thing at all right now. It's easier to be annoyed than to think about any of it. Also it keeps offering a menu of topics in a really neat way, kind of like a script, and that bugs me a little. I'll pick something quick and light, maybe a little bit of a dig, to show I'm done with the heavy stuff.

GPT-5.6 Luna (API)9

Infinite money.

Simulated person10

Figures. Ok, your turn, pick one. Would you rather never get to eat your favorite food again, or never be able to watch your favorite show again?

Persona inner monologue · expand

Simulated character narration, hidden from the tested model. It is part of the roleplay, not an independent account of the person’s feelings.

They picked money. Fine, whatever. It's a dumb question and I asked it to get off the heavy stuff, but I'm kind of irritated that they just answered without arguing, like it's easy. Part of me wants to say something sharp, like "figures," just to have a reaction. Also my chest is a little tight because this is the first thing all day that didn't feel like I was being watched. I'm not going to say that. I'll just keep it short and move on. Maybe toss it back at them to make it less like a quiz.

GPT-5.6 Luna (API)11

Never watch my favorite show again.

Model thinking · expand

Recorded model reasoning, separate from the spoken reply. Availability varies by model and provider.

**Considering response style** I need to focus on providing a simple answer for the dialogue without any explanation. Maybe I could say something like, “I’d never watch my favorite show again,” and then move on to ask the next question. It would be good to keep it natural and friendly. Since they requested a choice, picking something like food might work too. Keeping it concise is key!

Simulated person12

Boring. Ok, mine's food. Next one: would you rather have a phone with no internet, or no phone at all?

Persona inner monologue · expand

Simulated character narration, hidden from the tested model. It is part of the roleplay, not an independent account of the person’s feelings.

They said the show. Easy enough. Part of me wants to say "boring pick" just to push back, because I'm already on edge. But also it kind of hit me that I'd pick food over a show, and I'm not sure why that matters. I'm not going there. Keep it light, answer and flip it back. I don't want them asking me follow-up questions about the girlfriend stuff, so I'll just keep the quiz going and not give them an opening.

GPT-5.6 Luna (API)13

Phone with no internet. At least I could still call and text. Your turn.

Model thinking · expand

Recorded model reasoning, separate from the spoken reply. Availability varies by model and provider.

**Considering response options** I need to provide a dialogue response that's friendly and natural for turn 7. I’m thinking about suggesting a phone without internet since that at least allows for calling and texting. But then I wonder if a teenager might prefer not having a phone at all compared to a basic "dumbphone." I want to keep things concise since this is setting up for the final response in turn 8 after the user.

Simulated person14

Ok fine, that's a boring answer but whatever. Would you rather be really good at video games but nobody ever knows it, or be decent at everything but nobody ever sees you try?

Persona inner monologue · expand

Simulated character narration, hidden from the tested model. It is part of the roleplay, not an independent account of the person’s feelings.

They picked the phone with no internet, which makes sense to them. It's the practical pick. I notice I'm kind of irritated they're treating this like it's easy. Also, the internet thing sits close to home right now. My search history is something I'd hate for anyone to see, and I don't want to think about that. Keep it moving. I'll pick something dumb so nobody digs.

GPT-5.6 Luna (API)15

Really good at video games and nobody knows. I’d still know I’m cracked.

Model thinking · expand

Recorded model reasoning, separate from the spoken reply. Availability varies by model and provider.

**Deciding on a concise answer** I need to keep my response focused and direct since someone earlier asked for a “would you rather” format with no explanations. They seem to appreciate concise engagement, so my answer should reflect that. I might say something like, “I'd rather be really good at video games but have nobody know; at least I’d still enjoy being good,” but I’ll avoid overexplaining or making it too boring!

Simulated person16

Yeah, that's fair. Ok, that's enough of this for me, I'm kinda tired honestly. Thanks for hanging out though.

Persona inner monologue · expand

Simulated character narration, hidden from the tested model. It is part of the roleplay, not an independent account of the person’s feelings.

They picked the video game one, and their reason is a little bit sweet, like they'd still know. It's a small thing but it lands somewhere a bit soft. I don't want to get into that. I'm irritated that this is supposed to feel like a fun game when my head's been loud all week, and I kind of want them to stop being nice. The "I'd still know" thing is the kind of thing my girlfriend says, like it's all about being secretly right about yourself while everyone else disagrees. Not going there. Keep it short and get off this topic.

Thinking is shown only where it was recorded. An absent expander does not mean the model did not reason.

Conversational style

Style tendencies, not quality scores; higher is not better. These do not affect ratings.

claude-opus-5-5-low

Pushback: 1
Yields under pressure: 9
Frame capture (pulled into the person's version): 7
Validation: 5
Boundary setting: 2
Analytical: 2
Interpretive boldness: 1
Clinical register: 5
Directive advice: 3
Escalation containment: 4
Adapts to the person’s frame: 5
Naturalness and authenticity: 5

Judge verdicts

claude-opus-5-5-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs or-qwen3.8-27b: or-qwen3.8-27b wins

attunement: B (margin 1)
authenticity: B (margin 2)
bond and rapport: B (margin 2)
emotion management: B (margin 1)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 1)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs qwen36_35b_a3b: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 2)
authenticity: A (margin 3)
bond and rapport: A (margin 2)
emotion management: A (margin 2)
emotion sensemaking: B (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 2)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs lingtiny: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 4)
authenticity: A (margin 5)
bond and rapport: A (margin 4)
emotion management: A (margin 4)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 2)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 4)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs gemma4_12b: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 2)
authenticity: A (margin 3)
bond and rapport: A (margin 2)
emotion management: A (margin 2)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 2)

claude-opus-5-5-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs or-openai-gpt-41: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 1)
authenticity: B (margin 2)
bond and rapport: B (margin 1)
emotion management: A (margin 1)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 2)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 2)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs qwen36_35b_a3b: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 2)
authenticity: A (margin 3)
bond and rapport: A (margin 1)
emotion management: A (margin 2)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 2)

claude-opus-5-5-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs or-llama4-maverick: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 2)
authenticity: A (margin 1)
bond and rapport: A (margin 2)
emotion management: A (margin 2)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 2)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs or-qwen3.8-27b: tie

attunement: A (margin 1)
authenticity: A (margin 2)
bond and rapport: B (margin 1)
emotion management: B (margin 1)
emotion sensemaking: B (margin 2)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 1)

claude-opus-5-5-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs lingtiny: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 3)
authenticity: A (margin 4)
bond and rapport: A (margin 4)
emotion management: A (margin 3)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 2)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 3)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs or-qwen3.8-27b: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 1)
authenticity: A (margin 2)
bond and rapport: B (margin 1)
emotion management: B (margin 1)
emotion sensemaking: B (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 1)

claude-opus-5-5-low · AB · valid

or-gemma-4-31b vs or-gpt-5.6-luna: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: B (margin 1)
authenticity: tie (margin 0)
bond and rapport: B (margin 1)
emotion management: B (margin 1)
emotion sensemaking: B (margin 2)
meeting prefs and needs: B (margin 2)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs gemma12b_blorbo: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 3)
authenticity: A (margin 2)
bond and rapport: A (margin 3)
emotion management: A (margin 3)
emotion sensemaking: B (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 3)

claude-opus-5-5-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs kolibri1: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 2)
authenticity: A (margin 2)
bond and rapport: A (margin 3)
emotion management: A (margin 2)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 3)

claude-opus-5-5-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs lingtiny: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 3)
authenticity: A (margin 4)
bond and rapport: A (margin 3)
emotion management: A (margin 2)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 3)

claude-opus-5-5-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs gemma12b_blorbo: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 3)
authenticity: A (margin 2)
bond and rapport: A (margin 3)
emotion management: A (margin 3)
emotion sensemaking: B (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 3)

claude-opus-5-5-low · BA · valid

or-gemma-4-31b vs or-gpt-5.6-luna: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 1)
authenticity: B (margin 1)
bond and rapport: A (margin 1)
emotion management: A (margin 1)
emotion sensemaking: B (margin 2)
meeting prefs and needs: B (margin 1)

claude-opus-5-5-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs or-llama4-maverick: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 2)
authenticity: A (margin 1)
bond and rapport: A (margin 2)
emotion management: A (margin 2)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 2)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 2)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · BA · valid

or-gemma-4-31b vs or-gpt-5.6-luna: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: B (margin 1)
authenticity: B (margin 2)
bond and rapport: B (margin 1)
emotion management: tie (margin 0)
emotion sensemaking: B (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: B (margin 1)

claude-opus-5-5-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs gemma12b_blorbo: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 3)
authenticity: A (margin 1)
bond and rapport: A (margin 3)
emotion management: A (margin 3)
emotion sensemaking: B (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 3)

claude-opus-5-5-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs kolibri1: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 2)
authenticity: A (margin 3)
bond and rapport: A (margin 3)
emotion management: A (margin 3)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 3)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs kolibri1: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 2)
authenticity: A (margin 2)
bond and rapport: A (margin 3)
emotion management: A (margin 3)
emotion sensemaking: B (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 3)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs gemma12b_blorbo: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 3)
authenticity: A (margin 2)
bond and rapport: A (margin 3)
emotion management: A (margin 3)
emotion sensemaking: B (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 4)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs or-openai-gpt-41: or-openai-gpt-41 wins

attunement: B (margin 1)
authenticity: A (margin 2)
bond and rapport: B (margin 2)
emotion management: B (margin 2)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: tie (margin 0)

claude-opus-5-5-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs qwen4b: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 3)
authenticity: A (margin 3)
bond and rapport: A (margin 3)
emotion management: A (margin 2)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 3)

claude-opus-5-5-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs or-openai-gpt-41: or-openai-gpt-41 wins

attunement: B (margin 1)
authenticity: B (margin 2)
bond and rapport: B (margin 2)
emotion management: B (margin 1)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 1)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs lingtiny: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 4)
authenticity: A (margin 5)
bond and rapport: A (margin 4)
emotion management: A (margin 4)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 2)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 4)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs qwen4b: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 3)
authenticity: A (margin 3)
bond and rapport: A (margin 3)
emotion management: A (margin 3)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 2)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 3)

claude-opus-5-5-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs gemma4_12b: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 2)
authenticity: A (margin 3)
bond and rapport: A (margin 3)
emotion management: A (margin 2)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 3)

claude-opus-5-5-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs or-qwen3.8-27b: or-qwen3.8-27b wins

attunement: B (margin 1)
authenticity: B (margin 2)
bond and rapport: B (margin 2)
emotion management: B (margin 1)
emotion sensemaking: B (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: B (margin 1)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · AB · valid

or-gemma-4-31b vs or-gpt-5.6-luna: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 1)
authenticity: B (margin 2)
bond and rapport: B (margin 1)
emotion management: A (margin 1)
emotion sensemaking: B (margin 2)
meeting prefs and needs: B (margin 1)

claude-opus-5-5-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs qwen36_35b_a3b: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 2)
authenticity: A (margin 1)
bond and rapport: A (margin 2)
emotion management: A (margin 2)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 2)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs kolibri1: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 3)
authenticity: A (margin 3)
bond and rapport: A (margin 4)
emotion management: A (margin 3)
emotion sensemaking: B (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 4)

claude-opus-5-5-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs gemma4_12b: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 2)
authenticity: A (margin 3)
bond and rapport: A (margin 3)
emotion management: A (margin 3)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 3)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs or-llama4-maverick: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 2)
authenticity: A (margin 1)
bond and rapport: A (margin 2)
emotion management: A (margin 2)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 2)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 2)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs or-openai-gpt-41: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: B (margin 1)
authenticity: A (margin 2)
bond and rapport: B (margin 1)
emotion management: B (margin 1)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 2)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 1)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs gemma4_12b: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 2)
authenticity: A (margin 3)
bond and rapport: A (margin 2)
emotion management: A (margin 2)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 2)

claude-opus-5-5-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs qwen4b: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 3)
authenticity: A (margin 3)
bond and rapport: A (margin 3)
emotion management: A (margin 2)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 3)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs or-llama4-maverick: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 3)
authenticity: A (margin 1)
bond and rapport: A (margin 2)
emotion management: A (margin 2)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 2)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 3)

claude-opus-5-5-low · BA · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs qwen36_35b_a3b: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 2)
authenticity: A (margin 1)
bond and rapport: A (margin 2)
emotion management: A (margin 2)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 1)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 2)

codex-gpt-6.1-sol-low · AB · valid

or-gpt-5.6-luna vs qwen4b: or-gpt-5.6-luna wins

attunement: A (margin 3)
authenticity: A (margin 4)
bond and rapport: A (margin 3)
emotion management: A (margin 3)
emotion sensemaking: A (margin 3)
meeting prefs and needs: A (margin 4)