What Makes an Initial Reaction Ready for Discussion?: Multi-Persona AI Support for Stance Reflection and Writing
An initial reaction to a social or community issue can feel meaningful before it is ready to become a message: people still need to clarify the claim, anticipate audience risks, and decide how much reasoning should become visible to others. We present StanceLab, a prototype for preparing a stance before entering a discussion. The prototype compares a three-persona mode, where an Interviewer, Mentor, and Opponent respond in parallel to help users diagnose and revise a stance, with a standalone LLM mode. In a formative within-subject pilot with six participants and 12 task sessions, every session produced a short final message in the notepad. The pilot revealed two design requirements: persona roles should diagnose useful blind spots or objections, and parallel responses need coordination support. We propose a future diagnosis-and-writing workflow that turns persona-based reflection into selective, audience-aware final messages.