We are a research collective dedicated to providing public communication campaigns with rigorous, state-of-the-art tools for message development. Our methodology combines machine learning, crowdsourcing, and adaptive randomized controlled trials.
Organizations we’ve worked with
Recent academic research
Predicting Results of Social Science Experiments using Large Language Models
Luke Hewitt*, Ashwini Ashokkumar*, Isaias Ghezae, Robb Willer
paper (preprint)
Scaling language model size yields diminishing returns for single-message political persuasion
Kobi Hackenburg, Ben Tappin, Paul Röttger, Scott Hale, Jonathan Bright, Helen Margetts
paper (PNAS, 2025)
Using survey experiment pre-testing to support future pandemic response
Ben Tappin, Luke Hewitt
paper (PNAS Nexus, 2024)
Quantifying the impact of misinformation and vaccine-skeptical content on Facebook
Jennifer Allen, Duncan Watts, David Rand
paper (Science, 2024)
How Experiments Help Campaigns Persuade Voters: Evidence from a Large Archive of Campaigns’ Own Experiments
Luke Hewitt, David Broockman, Alex Coppock, Ben Tappin, James Slezak, Valerie Coffman, Nathaniel Lubin, Mohammad Hamidian
paper (APSR, 2024)
Quantifying the potential persuasive returns to political microtargeting
Ben Tappin, Chloe Wittenberg, Luke Hewitt, Adam Berinsky, David Rand
paper (PNAS, 2023)
Contact
team@rhetorical.org
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