THE RISE OF AI

We are being immersed in a world of AI, which leaves many people with mixed feelings of amazement and alarm. Its application in mental healthcare is no exception, while mental health disorders are on the increase worldwide. Psychologists and mental health providers are paying close attention to its impact on mental health support. A recent study of more than 40 000 Ontario Grades 4-12 children and teens, found that one out of five use a virtual therapist or chatbot for emotional support or advice. Sure, AI technology can be a useful first step, but let’s consider some of the benefits and limitations.

WHAT ARE THE RISKS?
There is a myriad of challenges to say the least, but here are a few. AI therapy chatbots are not equipped to handle mental health emergencies or crises intervention, it can misinterpret linguistics i.e. expressions, dialects, etc.; it can hallucinate i.e. create false information; it only validates what is heard i.e. anxiety, selfharm, delusions, etc.; it can form bias and stigma i.e. reinforcing existing stereotypes; it can create dependency i.e. a false sense of emotional connection or over-reliance; it can lead to “AI-psychosis” i.e. seeing the chatbot as godlike, best friend, romantic partner etc. Other considerations include liability issues i.e. who is held accountable when these tools do harm?; informed consent, privacy and confidentiality of your information i.e. what do you agree to, where is your data being stored, is it secure, who has access, etc. and so much more.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS?
I believe there is a place where AI tools play a positive role in mental health. Where immediate access to traditional therapy is not readily available, it can provide on-demand assistance and recommended behaviour modifications in the interim. It may help with proactive prediction (screening), prevention and early intervention. For example, through a question-based approach similar to that which mental health practitioners use. Interventions that use AI-driven neurofeedback systems and braincomputer interfaces already offer novel ways of regulating brain activity and emotional states.

USER BEWARE
There is no doubt that AI is reshaping the mental health landscape from workflow efficiency to innovative treatment interventions, to the rise of chatbots

THE RISE OF AI
ROCHE HERBST and virtual therapists. As these tools are becoming more common in their integration from transcribing session notes, streamlining administration tasks or providing ‘advice and support’, they are in no way a substitute for professional care. Remember that the accuracy of AI algorithms heavily depends on the quality and diversity of the data which it is trained on. Mental health disorders are complex and can look different for different people. They are influenced by social, cultural and contextual factors. Human therapists aren’t going away and shouldn’t. So yes, while it can compliment, it cannot replace the quality, empathy and uniqueness of human interaction and standards of care.

THE WAY FORWARD
As we can see, the challenges and future direction of AI in mental health care are indeed dynamic and multi-faceted. As AI technology continues to evolve, robust regulatory frameworks, validation, transparency, continuous research and development are needed to shape the future of mental health services. This will help to make them more accessible, safe, practical and ethical so we may be able to embrace its full potential.

Sources: Affective Generative Artificial Intelligence Use and Youth Mental Health. (Bonnesen, Krygsman, Hobson, et. al., 2026) doi: 10.1001/jamapediatrics.2026.3904; Ali M, Ali S, Abbas Q, Abbas Z, Lee SW. Artificial intelligence for mental health: A narrative review of applications, challenges, and future directions in digital health. Digit Health. 2025 Nov 17;11:20552076251395548. doi: 10.1177/20552076251395548. PMID: 41262770; PMCID: PMC12623648.

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