AI In Mental Health

Amy Vigliotti 

AI has been increasingly utilised to assist professionals in various domains, including mental health. AI-powered chatbots can be used as a therapeutic tool, offering structured interventions and support. Psychologists view AI as a complementary source of support, rather than a replacement for therapy. If you’ve seen the animated movie WALL-E, you might remember a scene from a future in which humans are floating on hover chairs, completely reliant on robots and other machines. Although the world may not quite reach the level of dependency depicted in the Pixar movie, a future involving heavy reliance on artificial intelligence appears more probable than ever as AI becomes more entangled with our daily lives.

Furthermore, professionals in several different fields have expressed concern over AI’s potential to take over their jobs. Creative industries are bearing witness to a rise in AI-generated music and art. AI powered image generators have even begun to seep into the realm of social media content creation, as the following of AI influencers continue to rise despite the lack of a real person behind them.

So what does this mean for the mental health field? Researchers and clinicians alike have explored the intersection between technology and mental health. Although AI lacks empathy and conscious awareness, AI has plenty to offer in terms of clinical practice. It can aid clinicians with administrative tasks, such as structuring sessions, highlighting themes and potential risks, taking notes on patient symptoms, and analysing assessments. Natural language tracking has been found to be incredibly accurate when detecting and classifying different mental health problems, such as depression, stress, energy levels, and sleep problems. 

Some researchers developed an AI programme to help clinicians cultivate their skills, detecting various facets of therapy quality from recorded transcripts and providing feedback for therapists. Chatbots may also pose as therapeutic tools for patients. The COVID-19 pandemic left a global mental health crisis in its wake, and a dire need for more mental health resources. As the demand for mental health resources outgrows the supply of practitioners, AI can help to close the gap, making mental health support more accessible as well as affordable for patients.

AI can aid in the delivery of structured interventions, such as cognitive behavioural therapy, for patients who struggle with concerns such as anxiety, sleep problems, or chronic pain. Users have sought advice from chatbots as well as coping skills and exercises to deal with stress, panic attacks, and other adverse situations. Further, AI may also benefit potential patients who may experience social anxiety or feelings of shame at the idea of speaking to a practitioner in traditional face-to-face therapy — indeed, the online disinhibition effect states that people are more likely to self-disclose when behind a screen than they would in-person.

Some chatbots have been developed that aim to deliver mental health treatment using artificial intelligence. Rather than allowing the chatbot to generate its own responses, they may utilise human clinician-approved statements to help users. The Trevor Project, a mental health organisation for the LGBTQ+ population, has been utilising AI as well in their mission. Their digital AI services aim to identify high-risk contacts as well as train crisis counsellors using simulations.

AI has the potential to transform and revolutionise the mental health field. Psychologists regard AI not as a replacement for real, face-to-face therapy, but as an additional source of support in a world in which artificial intelligence becomes more pervasive in our lives and mental health resources are becoming increasingly sought after.

-- Psychology Today