Connections Between AI and Mental Health

Artificial intelligence (AI) has increasingly become part of life, from content creation to work efficiency, and more. There are numerous uses for AI, including applications to support mental health. 

The connections between AI and mental health have drawn attention from medical and educational communities, including the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

One way AI can be used in a health-related context is by helping individuals be more aware of their mental well-being. AI can also be used to support early mental health intervention.

Yet with all of the positives AI can bring to individuals’ wellbeing in and out of professional healthcare settings, it’s important to recognize that AI isn’t a therapist and does not replace human, person-to-person care by a trained healthcare provider. 

The Use of AI for Mental Health Support

A few of the ways AI can be used to support mental health are presented below.

Gathering and Monitoring Data

AI is very good at gathering information, processing it, and then using it to formulate a response. Chatbots are a common example of this. Most people see customer service chatbots on websites, which are able to find solutions based on user input.

In support of mental wellness, AI can gather data on an individual’s speech, text, and behavior patterns and process that data to help people become more aware of their mental health. 

This might include a mood tracking app monitoring inputs.

Supporting the Articulation of Emotions

AI is really good at encouraging conversations with people. This can be beneficial, but with some caveats.

People who struggle to talk with others might find it easier to articulate thoughts and feelings to a chatbot. This can help people put their experiences in perspective and reflect on their emotions. However, a chatbot can’t be empathetic, and there’s the potential danger of an over-reliance on or overly validating an AI chatbot, which can lead to unhealthy emotional dependency. Again, AI may be helpful, but it is not a replacement for human interaction.

AI can also support guided journaling, offering mindfulness suggestions and prompts.

Helping Healthcare Clinicians

AI can be useful for clinicians who provide mental health care. Benefits of AI support include increased effectiveness and efficiency, allowing healthcare providers to offer better care and to treat more individuals. The ways clinicians can use AI include:

• Clinical use, including early detection and clinical support tools like software and even wearable technology
• Monitoring treatment to gain insight into potential risks and to make sure the treatment plan is followed
• Administrative use, such as streamlining communication, scheduling appointments, generating notes, and facilitating billing
• Training, such as creating mock scenarios based on real case studies, to help clinicians in training

Considering Interactions with AI

You can interact with AI in a few ways. The most common way is to use text on a computer or a device, as though you’re instant messaging. But you can also speak audibly to AI, and it can speak back through your speakers, which feels more like a real conversation. 

Sometimes, being able to type or say your thoughts out loud is all you really need to process what you’re feeling and reflect on what’s happened to you. You can talk to an AI without being worried about judgment or hurting someone’s feelings. 

But it’s always important to be aware that you aren’t talking to a person. AI can simulate conversation well, but when used without care, people can develop an emotional connection to an AI tool that it simply can’t reciprocate. Be careful of relying too much on AI over human conversations or becoming attached to it.

Ethics and Safety

While AI can be a great tool, there are reasons for caution concerning its use. It’s important to understand that AI cannot replace human support systems, and it can’t care about you. AI also isn’t perfect; it detects patterns and formulates solutions based on the information it has. It can produce incorrect or harmful results.

In the healthcare field, AI should be used responsibly to protect individuals. For example, it’s important to be as transparent as possible about when AI is being used and what it’s being used for. Consideration should also be given to what data has been used to train the AI. Using diverse data can help prevent AI from making incorrect conclusions due to limited, biased, or incomplete data.

Human Care for Mental Health Conditions

Mental health is a fundamentally human concern, so human healthcare providers should still be the primary source of treatment. Mental healthcare providers are better able to understand subtle nuances that an AI wouldn’t be able to pick up, and to use common sense to draw conclusions. 

More importantly, humans have the ability to care. Considering personal circumstances and how they might change from patient to patient is important to effective treatment. Human mental health providers able to feel and show real empathy for individuals are key. 

Looking Ahead: AI and Mental Health

AI continues to change, which means it could become increasingly useful in the mental healthcare field in the future. For example, some AI systems are getting better at identifying how people are feeling and adjusting their tone and responses to be more appropriate.

Also, as people get better at identifying what works and what doesn’t when it comes to AI, we may be able to use artificial intelligence in more effective ways to provide mental health support. For example, maybe AI will be harnessed to ably handle routine support and to help people become better at working through their feelings.

Mental Health Care from Trained Providers

Jackson House mental health care providers are trained professionals, positioned to offer mental health treatment for a variety of conditions, using modern treatment options in conjunction with real care and empathy.

If you have any questions about our approach to mental health care or would like to schedule a consultation, please contact us today.