The Narrative Research Forum – 2025
NewMR / Irrational Agency – Webinar
Thursday, 20 November 2025
Broadcast time 3 pm London
(10 am New York, 9 am Chicago)
Join us to discover the power of narrative in unlocking true future insights.
Four amazing sessions:
- Understanding the Emotional Barriers to Heat Pump Adoption
Lilla Magony, Associate Director, Irrational Agency
Danica Craiger-Smith, Insight Practice Manager, Energy Systems Catapult
- Listening Between the Lines: The Stories Consumers Tell Bots vs. Humans
Kristian Aloma, Founder and CEO, Threadline
- How Narrative Intelligence can unlock deeper social insights
Oryelle Clements, Associate Research Director, Pulsar
- What is the future of behavioural science and narrative research in an industry landscape rapidly accelerating use of artificial intelligence?
Leigh Caldwell managing partner of Irrational Agency and Ray Poynter, Founder of NewMR, sit down to discuss the convergence of behavioural science and AI. Does AI pose a risk to behavioural science, or can behavioural science help AI better reflect the irrationality of the consumer mind?
We will be sharing the slides and recordings, so even if the date or time does not suit, it is worth registering.
The Presentations in Detail
- Understanding the Emotional Barriers to Heat Pump Adoption
Lilla Magony, Associate Director, Irrational Agency
Danica Craiger-Smith, Insight Practice Manager, Energy Systems Catapult
As the UK moves toward Net Zero, switching from gas boilers to heat pumps is essential — yet uptake remains low compared to other European nations. Energy Systems Catapult partnered with Irrational Agency to uncover the psychological barriers behind this challenge, from distress scenarios to financial fears.
Using cutting-edge behavioural science and System 3 narrative research, the team explored how emotion shapes decision-making in high-stress purchase moments. The insights are now guiding programmes that build consumer trust, improve guidance, and support behaviour change on the path to 600,000 installations by 2028.
This session is ideal for researchers and marketers tackling behaviour change around emotional, high-stakes decisions.
- Listening Between the Lines: The Stories Consumers Tell Bots vs. Humans
Kristian Aloma, Founder and CEO, Threadline
Chatbots and AI moderators promise scale, honesty, and efficiency—but at what cost? Research shows people may disclose more freely to bots, yet share less emotional depth. Humans, by contrast, excel at empathy and resonance but risk introducing bias and inhibition. In this session, Kristian A. Alomá, PhD—founder of Threadline, a narrative psychology-based research agency, and president of the Society for Media Psychology and Technology—unpacks the enigma of storytelling to machines: where AI shines, where humans still matter most, and how we can borrow strengths from one to improve the other. The talk closes with a provocative roadmap for when to use AI, when to use people, and when to bring them together.
- How Narrative Intelligence can unlock deeper social insights
Oryelle Clements, Associate Research Director, Pulsar
Social listening provides both scope and specificity, but can sometimes feel like it’s attempting to freeze evolving narratives and dynamics in place. Narrative Intelligence, meanwhile, enables us to understand social behavior and perspectives as they actually are: fluid, dynamic and constantly mutating.
In this session, Pulsar Research Director Oryelle Clements explains how narratives can provide a springboard into understanding the emerging category of AI and beauty. How can narratives allow us to immediately get a sense of a given topic? How can it show us where to direct further research? And how can spotting the differences between public and media narratives reveal both risk and opportunity?