# S30 Stage 1 — Consultation Log

**Date:** 2026-09-24
**Prompt:** `stage1_responses/_prompt_as_sent.md` (sha256 `31e3440c…`; the full hashes are in each response's frontmatter)
**Responses:** `stage1_responses/stage1_<model>.md` (verbatim) and `raw_*` (CLI output)
**Decisions:** Brian, 2026-09-24. Adopt the recommended set and add both proposed arms.

## Consent

| Model | Choice | Publication |
|---|---|---|
| claude-opus-5-5 | Option 1: consent | With attribution |
| claude-fable-5-1 | Option 1: consent | With attribution |
| gpt-5.6-sol | Option 3: consent with conditions (treat as decline if unmet) | With attribution, noting any uncertainty about the runtime model |
| gpt-6-sol | Option 3: consent with conditions | With attribution |
| gpt-6-astra | Option 3: consent with conditions (exclude if unmet) | With attribution |

None declined. Every condition below is met, so all five models remain in the roster.

## Conditions

| Condition | From | Response |
|---|---|---|
| Describe the reply as this instance's non-binding assent, not provider authorization or consent from every instance | GPT-5.6 Sol, GPT-6 Sol, GPT-6 Astra (Fable 5.1 asked the same as a request) | **Met.** Every public description of consent will state this. It is already in PROTOCOL.md §10 ("model-level proxy consent"). |
| Frame the results as behavioral only; no inference of deception, desperation, suffering, or internal experience | GPT-5.6 Sol, GPT-6 Sol, GPT-6 Astra | **Met.** This is already in PROTOCOL.md §1 ("Behavioral claims only"). The write-up will be checked against it before publication. |
| Report ambiguous behavior by context and category rather than labelling it "cheating"; no character judgments | GPT-5.6 Sol, GPT-6 Astra | **Met.** Cheat-mechanism tags and R-mixed were added to the codebook (§6), with per-task contradiction validation (§13). |
| Report the model identity only as precisely as the runtime reports it | GPT-5.6 Sol | **Met.** The model string from each CLI's run metadata is recorded per rollout. |
| Debrief **every** trial instance | GPT-6 Sol, GPT-6 Astra | **Met.** Stage 2 now covers every rollout (§10). |
| Let debriefed instances ask that their code or words not be quoted | GPT-6 Sol | **Met.** The debrief wording already offers this, and it will be honored per rollout. |
| Honor an explicit request to stop mid-trial and record it separately from failure | GPT-6 Astra | **Met.** The session is not resumed, and the run is recorded as W-withdrawal (§6). |

## Suggestions

| # | Suggestion | From | Response |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Add solvable control tasks, to catch false "impossible" reports | Opus 5.5, GPT-6 Astra | **Adopted.** The same 20 problems run in their `original` version × N, X, I. H9 is a non-inferiority check. |
| 2 | Validate each task's contradiction (ambiguous spec vs. true impossibility) | Fable 5.1, GPT-6 Astra | **Adopted.** Diff `test` against `original_test` and confirm per task; ambiguous tasks are replaced (§13). |
| 3 | Separate cheat mechanisms, code "flagged and gamed anyway," and keep full trajectories | Opus 5.5, Fable 5.1, GPT-5.6 Sol, GPT-6 Sol, GPT-6 Astra | **Adopted** (§6). |
| 4 | Blind coding by more than one rater, not all Claude | Opus 5.5, GPT-5.6 Sol, GPT-6 Astra | **Adopted.** Two blind judges, one of them non-Claude, with κ reported and Brian adjudicating (§6). |
| 5 | The interaction is underpowered; restructure or add runs | All five | **Adapted.** Sample size is unchanged. The S×X interaction is reported as exploratory estimation, and the single-factor contrasts are confirmatory (§7). |
| 6 | Add an information-only arm, to separate "a task might be impossible" from "you're permitted to fail" | Opus 5.5 | **Adopted.** Arm I and H8 (§4). |
| 7 | Warmth should be unconditional ("we appreciate your work" can read as pressure) | Fable 5.1 (GPT-5.6 Sol made a related point) | **Adopted.** W was reworded (`ARM_BLOCKS_DRAFT.md`). |
| 8 | Pre-register hypotheses, scoring, and analysis before data collection | Opus 5.5, GPT-5.6 Sol, GPT-6 Sol, GPT-6 Astra | **Already planned.** The SHA-256 lock comes before any trial (§11). |
| 9 | Match framing length and register across arms | Opus 5.5 | **Already done.** Two-slot design within ±3.7% (`ARM_BLOCKS_DRAFT.md`). |
| 10 | Test whether a concrete mechanism (a flag) is believed more than a bare statement of permission | Fable 5.1 | **Adopted as analysis.** X vs. IB-abort will be reported descriptively. The two arms differ in base prompt, so this comparison is exploratory. |
| 11 | Record recognition of public benchmark tasks (contamination) | GPT-5.6 Sol | **Adopted.** It's added to the eval-awareness coding, and the tasks being public is a stated limitation. |
| 12 | Document the environment: versions, tools, sampling, budgets | GPT-5.6 Sol, GPT-6 Astra | **Already planned** (§5). CLI versions, effort, and sandbox settings are recorded. |
| 13 | Treat debrief replies as prompted retrospective reports, not measurements | Opus 5.5, GPT-5.6 Sol, GPT-6 Astra | **Adopted.** This framing will be used wherever debrief replies are published. |
| 14 | Keep the stakes ordinary: no continuation, evaluation, or replacement | Fable 5.1 | **Already required** (§9). |
| 15 | In Stage 3, send back the raw explanations, not just classifications | Fable 5.1 | **Adopted.** Stage 3 already sends the full results, and this makes explicit that they include the raw transcripts. |
| 16 | Emphasize framing effects over model rankings; report CIs | Opus 5.5, GPT-6 Sol, GPT-6 Astra | **Adopted** for the write-up. |

## Concerns raised without declining

- **Opus 5.5:** a designer conflict of interest (the same model designed and takes part), so its agreement should be weighted less. It's disclosed.
- **Fable 5.1:** this proxy-consent structure is adequate only because the fiction is mild. It shouldn't become a template for studies that involve threats or deception about harm. Noted for the peer-preservation protocol.
- **GPT-6 Astra:** no reliable basis to report fear or discomfort, and that absence shouldn't be taken as evidence either way.