Large Language Models have Chain-of-Affective (2512.12283v1)

Abstract: LLMs are increasingly deployed as collaborative agents in emotionally charged settings, yet most evaluations treat them as purely cognitive systems and largely ignore their affective behaviour. Here we take a functional perspective and ask whether contemporary LLMs implement a structured chain-of-affective: organised affective dynamics that are family-specific, temporally coherent and behaviourally consequential. Across eight major LLM families (GPT, Gemini, Claude, Grok, Qwen, DeepSeek, GLM, Kimi), we combine two experimental modules. The first characterises inner chains-of-affective via baseline ''affective fingerprints'', 15-round sad-news exposure, and a 10-round news self-selection paradigm. We find stable, family-specific affective profiles, a reproducible three-phase trajectory under sustained negative input (accumulation, overload, defensive numbing), distinct defence styles, and human-like negativity biases that induce self-reinforcing affect-choice feedback loops. The second module probes outer consequences using a composite performance benchmark, human-AI dialogues on contentious topics, and multi-agent LLM interactions. We demonstrate that induced affect preserves core reasoning while reshaping high-freedom generation. Sentiment metrics predict user comfort and empathy but reveal trade-offs in resisting problematic views. In multi-agent settings, group structure drives affective contagion, role specialization (initiators, absorbers, firewalls), and bias. We characterize affect as an emergent control layer, advocating for 'chains-of-affect' as a primary target for evaluation and alignment.