SoulSeek: Exploring the Use of Social Cues in LLM-based Information Seeking

📝 Original Info

• Title: SoulSeek: Exploring the Use of Social Cues in LLM-based Information Seeking
• ArXiv ID: 2601.01094
• Date: 2026-01-03
• Authors: Yubo Shu, Peng Zhang, Meng Wu, Yan Chen, Haoxuan Zhou, Guanming Liu, Yu Zhang, Liuxin Zhang, Qianying Wang, Tun Lu, Ning Gu

📝 Abstract

Social cues, which convey others' presence, behaviors, or identities, play a crucial role in human information seeking by helping individuals judge relevance and trustworthiness. However, existing LLM-based search systems primarily rely on semantic features, creating a misalignment with the socialized cognition underlying natural information seeking. To address this gap, we explore how the integration of social cues into LLM-based search influences users' perceptions, experiences, and behaviors. Focusing on social media platforms that are beginning to adopt LLM-based search, we integrate design workshops, the implementation of the prototype system (SoulSeek), a between-subjects study, and mixed-method analyses to examine both outcome-and process-level findings. The workshop informs the prototype's cue-integrated design. The study shows that social cues improve perceived outcomes and experiences, promote reflective information behaviors, and reveal limits of current LLM-based search. We propose design implications emphasizing better social-knowledge understanding, personalized cue settings, and controllable interactions.

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