AI-based treatment of psychological conditions: the potential use, benefits and drawbacks
Mental healthcare in a range of countries faces challenges, including rapidly increasing demand at a time of restricted access to services, insufficient mental healthcare professionals and limited funding. This can result in long delays and late diagnosis. The use of artificial intelligence (AI) tec...
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Open Exploration Publishing Inc.
2025-04-01
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| Series: | Exploration of Digital Health Technologies |
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| Online Access: | https://www.explorationpub.com/uploads/Article/A101143/101143.pdf |
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| author | Michael Baber Barbara Baker |
| author_facet | Michael Baber Barbara Baker |
| author_sort | Michael Baber |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Mental healthcare in a range of countries faces challenges, including rapidly increasing demand at a time of restricted access to services, insufficient mental healthcare professionals and limited funding. This can result in long delays and late diagnosis. The use of artificial intelligence (AI) technology to help to address these shortcomings is therefore being explored in a range of countries, including the UK. The recent increase in reported studies provides an opportunity to review the potential, benefits and drawbacks of this technology. Studies have included AI-based chatbots for patients with depression and anxiety symptoms; AI-facilitated approaches, including virtual reality applications in anxiety disorders; avatar therapy for patients with psychosis; AI humanoid robot-enhanced therapy, for both children and the isolated elderly in care settings; AI animal-like robots to help patients with dementia; and digital game interventions for young people with mental health conditions. Overall, the studies showed positive effects and none reported any adverse side effects. However, the quality of the data was low, mainly due to a lack of studies, a high risk of bias and the heterogeneity of the studies. Importantly also, longer-term effects were often not evident. This suggests that translating small-scale, short-term trials into effective large-scale, longer-term real-world applications may be a particular challenge. While the use of AI in mental healthcare appears to have potential, its use also raises important ethical and privacy concerns, potential risk of bias, and the risk of unintended consequences such as over-diagnosis or unnecessary treatment of normal emotional experiences. More robust, longer-term research with larger patient populations, and clear regulatory frameworks and ethical guidelines to ensure that patients’ rights, privacy and well-being are protected, are therefore needed. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-4f3febe2842b40529ed63fa4fbd06477 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2996-9409 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | Open Exploration Publishing Inc. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Exploration of Digital Health Technologies |
| spelling | doaj-art-4f3febe2842b40529ed63fa4fbd064772025-08-20T02:32:07ZengOpen Exploration Publishing Inc.Exploration of Digital Health Technologies2996-94092025-04-01313394810.37349/edht.2025.101143AI-based treatment of psychological conditions: the potential use, benefits and drawbacksMichael Baber0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1519-6037Barbara Baker1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7858-8842Health Action Research Group, SW19 2RR London, UKHealth Action Research Group, SW19 2RR London, UKMental healthcare in a range of countries faces challenges, including rapidly increasing demand at a time of restricted access to services, insufficient mental healthcare professionals and limited funding. This can result in long delays and late diagnosis. The use of artificial intelligence (AI) technology to help to address these shortcomings is therefore being explored in a range of countries, including the UK. The recent increase in reported studies provides an opportunity to review the potential, benefits and drawbacks of this technology. Studies have included AI-based chatbots for patients with depression and anxiety symptoms; AI-facilitated approaches, including virtual reality applications in anxiety disorders; avatar therapy for patients with psychosis; AI humanoid robot-enhanced therapy, for both children and the isolated elderly in care settings; AI animal-like robots to help patients with dementia; and digital game interventions for young people with mental health conditions. Overall, the studies showed positive effects and none reported any adverse side effects. However, the quality of the data was low, mainly due to a lack of studies, a high risk of bias and the heterogeneity of the studies. Importantly also, longer-term effects were often not evident. This suggests that translating small-scale, short-term trials into effective large-scale, longer-term real-world applications may be a particular challenge. While the use of AI in mental healthcare appears to have potential, its use also raises important ethical and privacy concerns, potential risk of bias, and the risk of unintended consequences such as over-diagnosis or unnecessary treatment of normal emotional experiences. More robust, longer-term research with larger patient populations, and clear regulatory frameworks and ethical guidelines to ensure that patients’ rights, privacy and well-being are protected, are therefore needed.https://www.explorationpub.com/uploads/Article/A101143/101143.pdfmental healthartificial intelligencedepressionanxietybenefitsdrawbacks |
| spellingShingle | Michael Baber Barbara Baker AI-based treatment of psychological conditions: the potential use, benefits and drawbacks Exploration of Digital Health Technologies mental health artificial intelligence depression anxiety benefits drawbacks |
| title | AI-based treatment of psychological conditions: the potential use, benefits and drawbacks |
| title_full | AI-based treatment of psychological conditions: the potential use, benefits and drawbacks |
| title_fullStr | AI-based treatment of psychological conditions: the potential use, benefits and drawbacks |
| title_full_unstemmed | AI-based treatment of psychological conditions: the potential use, benefits and drawbacks |
| title_short | AI-based treatment of psychological conditions: the potential use, benefits and drawbacks |
| title_sort | ai based treatment of psychological conditions the potential use benefits and drawbacks |
| topic | mental health artificial intelligence depression anxiety benefits drawbacks |
| url | https://www.explorationpub.com/uploads/Article/A101143/101143.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT michaelbaber aibasedtreatmentofpsychologicalconditionsthepotentialusebenefitsanddrawbacks AT barbarabaker aibasedtreatmentofpsychologicalconditionsthepotentialusebenefitsanddrawbacks |