Maybe I have been too complacent. Although I have certainly read headlines in the press warning of significant job losses across the board as the capability of artificial intelligence (AI) gathers pace, somehow I imagined that psychotherapy would be different: how, I wondered, could a robot ever replace the core conditions of empathy, congruence and unconditional acceptance that, according to one school of thought, is essential for clients to face emotional distress and achieve lasting change. But AI, it transpires, has other plans as ever-more-sophisticated algorithms are developed to recreate the relationship between client and therapist. These have been learned from an analysis of tens of thousands of transcripts of real-life counselling sessions to create a retrieval-based decision tree, a flowchart of established responses that AI can navigate depending on recognisable prompts in the conversation.
Of course, there is little doubt that technology may prove useful in the management of mental health, as evidenced by the plethora of Apps available to download: 20,000 to be precise! And AI has already begun to significantly increase their impact. It has, for instance, proven feasible to use AI not only to aid in diagnosis of complex psychological disorders but to improve the accuracy of diagnosis which, unlike medical conditions, depends on subjective, self-reported feelings and experiences rather than objective physiological or biochemical tests. AI has also been helpful in ensuring compliance to treatment by spotting unhealthy behaviour patterns and prompting patients to take medication or attend impending appointments. But it is the efficacy of treatment itself that leaves me somewhat sceptical: could computer-generated responses ever substitute for the input of a fellow human being? Granted AI has its advantages: access to help at any time of the day, 7 days a week at an affordable price is certainly an attractive prospect that cannot be ignored. But artificial intelligence should never be mistaken for emotional intelligence. Nor should the importance of the relationship between client and therapist ever be under-estimated as a positive force for change.
A recent global survey conducted by Gallup (https://go.nature.com/48xhU3p) found that young adults report the highest levels of loneliness in society, despite (or perhaps because of!) the widespread use of social media to maintain contacts and relationships. Up to a third of these adults reported consistently feeling either fairly or very lonely, the sense of social isolation they experience contributing to the growing epidemic of poor mental health. If the loss of social cohesion and interpersonal relationships is a factor in causing conditions such as depression and anxiety, it is difficult to imagine how a solution to the problem could be a computer-generated algorithm that dispenses altogether with the need for human contact in therapy. So, while I monitor current trends in AI with interest, I shall resist the urge to update my CV just yet…
(Image courtesy of Markus Spiske and Unsplash)