Would anyone be interested in joining a social experiment to examine the political divide?

If you are interested, please fill out this from, and I’ll get back to you in a few days.

The core question we’re examining is: Does casual cross-party discussion reduce political polarization?

For one week, I will run a Discord group with five self-identified liberals and five self-identified conservatives. Each day, I’ll post a new discussion prompt, starting with light, neutral topics (e.g., “What did you have for dinner last night?”) and gradually progressing to more controversial ones, such as gun control and trans rights.

How it works:

Participants will complete three short surveys: one before the experiment, one immediately after, and one a month later. (For this, I will need your email.) in this way, we can see if your opinions or thoughts change because of exposure to other groups.

You will be asked to fill out an informed consent form, outlining the experiment, the expectations for participants, and any potential risks involved. (For this, emotional distress and social anxiety).

You’re encouraged to participate daily, but there’s no required time commitment, and it’s okay if you miss a day or two.

The goal is to gather meaningful data while keeping the discussions respectful, engaging, and thought-provoking.

Participants will be asked to agree to a set of respect rules. If these rules are broken more than once, the individual will be removed from the group.

Why am I doing this? I love participating in experiments and have been a subject in several myself—it’s actually a lot of fun! This project is inspired by my own experiences, as well as initiatives like Living Room Conversations (which facilitates in-person political discussions) and Braver Angels (a nonprofit focused on bridging political divides).

If this experiment goes well, I’d love to refine and repeat it. But more than anything, I hope it will be a fun, respectful, and eye-opening experience for everyone involved.

Would you be interested in participating? If so please fill out this form, and I’ll get back to you within a few days.

Edit: my lord there are more of you than I expected! That’s great, we are most certainly going to at least attempt this. I’ll be contacting everyone today or tomorrow.

PLEASE NOTE; anyone, of any political affiliation is welcome. However, you do ‘need to pick a side’. It’s important that we have an even balance, and no one feels ganged up on. If you are truly 50/50 and unsure, ask yourself the following questions:

In a room of average Americans, would I be considered left or right leaning on abortion?

Same, but for gun control.

Same again, but for trans rights.

Edit 2: Hi all, two things. YES, please keep sending in the applications!!It may take a few weeks to get back you, but the more people the more robust the data. We have had over 1,300 people so far and are very excited.

ALSO, VERY IMPORTANT- If you do not give us your email, we cannot contact you, and will have no way to actually get you into the study.

Some people have filled out the form and refused to include that information. The initial survey data is still useful to us, so we are grateful for your time. But again, we will not be able to contact you for next steps without it.