The "Artificial Other": Integrating Chatbots in Mental Healthcare

Dr. Asman, together with Dr. Amir Tal, both a discuss possible implications of chatbots as an "artificial other" in mental healthcare and discuss several use cases from a growing professional community in Israel. These include potential benefits for patients and therapists alike.

Considering a general ethical framework for utilizing Conversational Artificial Intelligence (CAI) in mental health is challenging, as more potential uses unravel. As a general thumb rule, responsible practices of utilizing chatbots in mental health care should preserve human attachment in therapy. But this remains an oversimplification that warrants further nuance.

Risks such as over-reliance on the machine and decreased human connection are more evident with the ever-improving performances of CAI. These risks could be discussed in therapy and have an intrinsic therapeutic value.

The duality of the bot – being “human like” as well as “far from being human” may be utilized in therapy for new directions of exploration. Lack of transparency and explainability regarding the reasoning for generated texts could create uncertainty but this may be an opportunity to explore emotions, interpretations, and responses of the patient, in line with their therapeutic goals and needs.

Strange, upsetting, or unexpected outputs could be utilized to delve into a meaningful discussion in therapy. From a therapeutic standpoint, a shared exploration of the way this unique artificial other evokes ideas, thoughts, feelings and behaviors enhances current therapy tools.

(September 2023)