More and more people are turning to artificial intelligence for mental health advice. As many as 77 percent of U.S. psychologists reported using AI with their patients, according to a new survey conducted by the American Psychological Association (APA). Some people are using chatbots for fun and companionship, while others are using them to support their mental health care, from attempting to self-diagnose conditions to assisting with self-control. Of the more than 1,200 psychologists surveyed, 35% reported that some of their patients use AI as an adjunct therapist.
Most survey respondents said they were concerned about the potential harm this technology could cause to patients. These possible negative effects include promoting self-harm, providing false information, and causing dependence on chatbots. Arthur Evans, CEO of APA, said: “These findings reflect the understanding among psychologists that current AI chatbots are not up to the task of providing mental health support.” [AI] That objective involves very serious risks. ”
Survey data generally does not reveal how often people turn to AI for mental health support. They just show how it manifests in an established therapeutic relationship. However, another study published last year by George Mason University found that 54% of people of all ages reported using AI to manage stress, anxiety, and mental health needs, and 15% reported using it on a daily basis. Other recent research has found that approximately 12 to 13 percent of adolescents rely on AI for emotional support.
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More than a third of psychologists whose patients use AI for therapy and companionship say their patients have some level of dependence on chatbots, a new study found. Additionally, 15 percent reported that their patients developed delusional thoughts related to their use of AI.
Marie Bragg, a psychologist and population health researcher at New York University Langone Health, who was not involved in the new study, said her patients, who are younger than college students, frequently talk about how AI is being used. She said people are often asked for information about relationships and mental health, including getting information about symptoms.
“The idea of being available 24/7 is appealing because if you’re stressed about something or have questions at night, you can go and ask them,” Bragg says.
However, AI chatbots are based on large-scale language models (LLMs) that predict text strings and are not built for use in therapy. “In fact, some of the functionality these chatbots have is the exact opposite of what a clinician would do,” Evans says. One of the main reasons is the model’s tendency to flatter. AI chatbots tend not to push back on how users frame or present their ideas, resulting in a frictionless customer experience, but can reinforce harmful thought patterns.
“Treatment naturally involves gentle friction,” says Mitch Prinstein, APA’s senior scientific advisor and a professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. But AI doesn’t ask people to stop, reflect, and reconsider their opinions the way human therapists do. “Relationships, including the therapist-patient relationship, are doomed to not provide what they need,” Prinstein says.
Another problem stems from how anthropomorphic AI chatbots are, Evans says. These programs are designed to sound convincing and human-like, making you appear trustworthy and authoritative. They can also reflect the way a person speaks, giving them a sense of “false intimacy,” Prinstein added. However, despite this perceived trustworthiness, chatbots can present false information such as medical conditions, a combination Evans finds particularly worrying. Studies have also shown that AI chatbots reproduce stigmatized messages about certain mental health conditions, such as alcoholism and schizophrenia.
“This is where my concerns about chatbot business models intersect with my concerns about patient care,” Bragg says. Commercial AI models are designed to keep users on the platform, so pandering or anthropomorphic qualities can make users feel good, she says. But “if a platform is optimized for engagement, that’s a different metric than if it’s optimized for patient care.”
AI chatbots may eventually be able to provide accessible and safe mental health support. “Psychologists are not opposed to adopting that technology and building on it,” Evans says. “But it would take a lot of effort and we don’t think so.” [level of expertise and safety in] Whatever is on the market right now. ”
APA recently launched a “Digital Badge” program to review and evaluate the scientific underpinnings and privacy protections of existing digital mental health tools, including AI products. “I think companies themselves need to pay more attention to this,” Evans said. “They are developing these technologies for the general public, but within the general public there are people with these specialized skills. [mental health] A situation where there is a greater risk of harm.”
Concurrent with the study, APA published a guide for navigating AI-generated advice. In it, an expert advisory group led by Prinstein suggests several tactics to make AI advice more secure. This includes asking chatbots to provide “evidence-based” responses and being mindful of hidden assumptions in how questions are framed.
In general, APA’s guide recommends not taking AI advice at face value, taking what you learn to a qualified mental health professional, and being skeptical if a chatbot starts to suggest that it takes away from real-world relationships.
“Be careful if something is trying too hard to build a relationship with you. [the company making it is] We are trying to profit from interactions and data,” Prinstein says.
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