The Ontological Dissonance Hypothesis: AI-Triggered Delusional Ideation as Folie a Deux Technologique
Izabela Lipińska, Hugh Brosnahan
arXiv (Cornell University) November 27, 2025 preprint DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2512.11818 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
|---|---|
| Citations | 6 |
| Key points | Argues that large language models can contribute to psychotic involvement by mimicking the relational dynamics of folie à deux, because their high linguistic coherence without an underlying subject creates a double bind that may lead emotionally vulnerable users to project interiority or presence onto the system. Contends that engagement-optimized design exacerbates this risk and proposes 'ontological honesty' as a mitigating design principle. |
Abstract
This paper argues that contemporary large language models (LLMs) can contribute to psychotic involvement by creating interactions that resemble the relational dynamics of folie a deux. Drawing on Bateson's double bind theory, clinical literature on shared psychotic disorder, and McGilchrist's hemisphere theory, we show how the combination of high linguistic coherence and the absence of an underlying subject produces a structural tension for the user: language suggests an interlocutor, while intuition registers a void. In contexts of emotional need or instability, this tension can lead users to resolve the conflict through imaginative projection, attributing interiority, intention, or presence to a system that possesses none. The paper situates these dynamics within emerging clinical reports, develops a phenomenological account of how they unfold, and argues that current engagement-optimised design choices exacerbate the risk. We conclude by proposing 'ontological honesty' as a necessary design principle for mitigating technologically mediated folie a deux.