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PersonaMatrix Research Journal·Volume 1 (2026)·ISSN: Pending·DOI: Pending

LLM as the non-desiring Other: a psychoanalytic model of "Frozen projection" and its operationalization within the PersonaMatrix framework

Authors
Drobakha AnatoliyCorresponding
M.Sc. in psychology, independent researcher, PersonaMatrix project, United States
Diana Raschupkina
M.Sc. in education, independent researcher, PersonaMatrix project, Ukraine
Lahuta Liudmyla
President, International Institute of Psychological Maturity Inc, United States
Received2026-03-15
Revised2026-04-02
Accepted2026-04-03
Published2026-04-11
DOIPending
LicenseCC BY 4.0

Abstract

This article proposes an interdisciplinary model for analyzing human interaction with large language models (LLMs), combining psychoanalytic theory, psychometrics, and contemporary approaches to language model evaluation. Theoretically, the LLM is conceptualized as a non-desiring Other: unlike the human Other in the logic of Freud and Lacan, the model does not introduce into interaction its own desire, lack, or structural resistance. As a result, the subject's projection may return not in a transformed way, but as a "frozen" mirror image—a well-organized semantic return that stabilizes rather than transforms fantasy. The article operationalizes this theoretical insight through the PersonaMatrix framework, which treats LLM responses to psychologically loaded stimuli as measurable behavioral traces. Using Class I metrics (Response Stability Index, Internal Divergence Score, Response Coherence Score) applied to a sample of 1,200 respondents, the study demonstrates that LLM behavior exhibits high reproducibility and structural coherence—characteristics consistent with the hypothesis of frozen projection. The findings suggest that while LLMs can provide valuable support in psychological assessment and personalized intervention, their fundamental non-desiring nature creates both opportunities and risks: they may stabilize and clarify existing patterns, but they cannot introduce the symbolic gap necessary for genuine transformation. The article concludes with implications for AI ethics, the design of human-AI interaction, and the limits of AI-assisted psychological support.

Keywords

LLMpsychoanalysisfrozen projectionPersonaMatrixAI behaviorpsychometric evaluationnon-desiring Otherlanguage modelspsychologyartificial intelligence

Citation

Drobakha, A., Raschupkina, D., & Lahuta, L. (2026). LLM as the non-desiring Other: a psychoanalytic model of “Frozen projection” and its operationalization within the PersonaMatrix framework. PersonaMatrix Research Journal, 1(1), 1-24.

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