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ZENODO
Preprint . 2026
License: CC BY
Data sources: ZENODO
ZENODO
Preprint . 2026
License: CC BY
Data sources: Datacite
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Observer Depth: Quantifying Reflexive Intelligence in LLMs via Phase Transition Analysis

Authors: Zhang, Mian; Zhang, Mian;

Observer Depth: Quantifying Reflexive Intelligence in LLMs via Phase Transition Analysis

Abstract

We present ReflexBench, the first benchmark designed to evaluate reflexive reasoning in large language models - the capacity to reason about one's own causal impact on the environment being analyzed. ReflexBench comprises 20 scenarios across 6 domains, each probing four levels of Observer Depth (OD). We evaluate 5 frontier LLMs and find that all exhibit systematic degradation at higher observer depths (mean Delta = -0.50). We propose the Soros Test as a practical standard for evaluating observer-participant readiness and document that reflexive capabilities emerge through a phase transition during multi-reward GRPO training.

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selected citations
These citations are derived from selected sources.
This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Citations provided by BIP!
popularity
This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Popularity provided by BIP!
influence
This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Influence provided by BIP!
impulse
This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Impulse provided by BIP!
0
Average
Average
Average
Green