From a Therapist’s Perspective: The Pros and Cons of AI in Mental Health

Lately I’ve been asking many of our therapists…

Have you heard about ChatGPT? 

If you’ve been keeping up with the latest tech or marketing trends or are just fairly active on social media, then you’ve probably heard about ChatGPT.

ChatGPT is the latest and greatest when it comes to AI — at least in terms of chatbots or language and text applications. ChatGPT feels as if you’re actually talking with another human or reading something written by one.

All that goes to show how far artificial intelligence has come. However, these AI advancements beg the question — how would AI fit in with mental health? Could AI technology like ChatGPT be used in mental health and therapy? Is it a tool that could help us connect with potential clients more easily? What are the potential drawbacks? 

These questions sparked a conversation about the role AI could play in our field, and we knew we had to explore the topic more deeply.

As with most things, the future of AI in mental health and therapy isn’t all black and white. It’s worth examining the pros and cons — and that’s what’ll be exploring in this piece from the standpoint of a mental health professional.

In this blog post, we'll delve into the pros and cons of using AI in mental health. While it's not a clear-cut issue, we believe it's important to explore the possibilities and potential impact of this exciting technology.

But First, What Is Artificial Intelligence?

Before we get into the nitty-gritty of artificial intelligence in behavioral and mental health, let’s first clarify — what exactly is artificial intelligence?

Artificial intelligence (AI) is exactly what its name implies; it’s a simulation or artificial version of human intelligence generally used by machines and computer systems. Over the years, AI has become the catch-all term for software or programs that can do tasks that typically require human intelligence.

AI programming essentially learns from the data it’s allowed to access and the rules or algorithms it follows. Many businesses and platforms already integrate machine learning. For example, Google, Facebook, and Amazon all use AI to improve their services and products.

AI in Healthcare

What does AI look like in the healthcare industry?

As early as now, AI and its close cousins — machine learning and robotics — are already being integrated into healthcare. 

AI is actually widely used today. It’s just not as flashy as you might initially think, though. 

Prime examples of AI use include speech recognition, language translation, predictive analytics, and conversations or chatting. All these are used not just in the healthcare industry but various others as well.

AI-powered solutions are also being explored in creating hospital or healthcare administration tools, with the goal of further improving ease-of-use, efficiency, and reducing admin task-related burnout. This can be a huge help not just for big healthcare systems but especially for private practice therapists.

Specific emerging uses of AI in the healthcare space include:

• Medical imaging analysis or review
• Early disease detection, such as cancer
• Screening and prediction of drug compounds for medicine development
• Analysis of patient data and medical records
• Disease forecast or prediction, particularly for acute kidney disease

In the mental health space, the bulk of AI use right now is through various apps and software — both for us therapists and our clients. 

In his TedTalk, Andy Blackwell describes how he and his colleagues at ISEO are using AI to analyze and identify which pieces of conversation between therapists and clients, and therefore which treatment modalities are most effective at treating various mental health concerns.

AI In Mental Health: Considering the possibilities and drawbacks

What about the mental health care space? Is AI really a promising tool in a field that heavily involves emotions and requires both human introspection and intelligence?

For the most part, yes — AI can be a great tool for therapists and other mental health professionals, even those in private practice. However, like many things, this tool also has its ups and downs.

Endless possibilities for improvements to client care

Let’s take a look at all the pros first. What are the benefits of AI for us therapists? 

As early as now, AI use in mental health-related services is already 

showing signs of becoming a real game-changer. The technology can not only give us greater insight into clients’ needs and medical history but also help us streamline our practice administrative duties.

In short, AI can be a valuable tool both on the medical or therapy side of our job as well as the business side of things.

Below are a few benefits of artificial intelligence in mental health.

Quality Control

AI can help us maintain high therapy standards. It’s a useful tool for both quality control and automation.

With more and more people seeking therapy and mental health help, workloads are getting heavier. Heavier workloads mean we can be stretched pretty thin, which is often a cause for slipping quality.

There are already mental health clinics that are implementing AI software to help therapists go over therapy session transcripts. Using natural-language processing (NLP), AI is used to process transcripts and give therapists deeper insight into their work, especially the words they use when speaking with clients.

Diagnosing Mental Illness

Similar to how AI is already starting to be used in detecting early signs of cancer and predicting acute kidney disease, it can also be used in a similar way in mental health.

AI’s pattern recognition and predictive analytics can help supplement therapists’ knowledge and experience. It can help us avoid second-guessing our diagnosis by analyzing client medical records and determining patterns of behavior.

In short, it can help us assess mental health issues faster and more accurately by providing us with evidence or proof to support our findings. These kinds of AI software may also provide insight and help determine the best course of treatment.

Reduce Bias and Error

Even if we don’t use AI straight-up for diagnosing illnesses, it can still serve as a kind of safety net or backup. Having an AI analyze our session transcripts and provide us with evidence to support our recommendations and help reduce the likelihood of inaccurate diagnoses or treatment planning.

AI tools can also help therapists and counselors reduce any unintended bias with the help of simple reminders. 

When things get too hectic and mental exhaustion is at the forefront, it’s natural that there’s a wider margin for human error.

If you have an AI app or tool that can gently nudge you to ask certain questions, you can push past surface-level appearances and notice the more subtle signs of their condition.

This can be quite helpful when dealing with clients who are otherwise high-functioning.

Flagging Early Warning Signs

Just like how AI pattern recognition and predictive analytics can help with diagnosing mental illnesses, it can also potentially be used like an early warning device.

Imagine having an app that can alert you when your client starts to show signs of trouble through their online interaction, language they use, or even deviation in their regular habits, such as how often they may be leaving the house or staying at home.

In many cases, timely intervention is all that stands between a dangerous breakdown that can undo months of careful work and therapy sessions.

Identify the Ideal Treatment Approach for Clients

AI pattern recognition can also be used to help identify and reaffirm the efficacy of evidence-based treatments.

In one study, AI was able to successfully analyze conversations between therapists and clients. It recognized speech patterns or phrases and found that higher levels of CBT or use of CBT techniques during sessions with clients as opposed to general chat were linked to improved recovery rates.
 

Drawbacks of AI in Therapy: Understanding the limits of AI in therapy

What did you think about the pros of AI and examples I gave above? It all sounds amazing, right?

Maybe a little too amazing in some aspects, even. When we only look at those benefits, it seems like a no-brainer to integrate AI into our practices and support widespread use of AI teletherapy chatbot apps.

However, if something is too good to be true, that usually means it isn’t — and AI is no exception. Just as it has its pros, it still has its cons.

Need for Human Oversight

Despite the leaps and bounds that AI technology has made in recent years, it’s still got a long way to go before we can run it without any human oversight.

Quality control is still an essential part of using AI responsibly. Technology, no matter how smart, still can benefit from a once-over by a human to ensure the information is relevant.

Chatbots that learn and adapt need a database where they can pull the answers they give users. Diagnostic apps still need an actual human doctor to verify the data presented and the course of action the AI may have suggested.

If we want to use AI technology efficiently and to its full potential, there still needs to be human input and assessment. 

Lack of Personal Interaction

Chatbots can provide valuable service and insight, but they can’t provide actual human interaction and emotional connection, and that can be one of the drawbacks of AI in therapy.

AI isn’t programmed for emotions or feelings — it’s just a rational software that essentially regurgitates information it’s been fed or data it finds on the internet.

In a field like mental health where emotion, trust, and connections are part of therapy and the healing journey, AI is on the losing end. Heavy reliance on rationality, rules, and regulations is not always what clients need. In some cases, it may even be the opposite.

Helping Clients Use AI in Mental Health to Their Advantage

With all that said, AI in mental health is still quite promising. Yes, it has its drawbacks, but that’s where we come in — to educate our clients about these cons and to take charge in their healing journey.

There’s no denying the convenience that AI can offer to us and to our clients. With proper use and the continuing development of technology, it can make mental health care much more accessible and less stigmatized.

Using AI with a healthy amount of caution is key — as is finding the balance between AI and live human therapy. 

Staying up to date with AI developments and integration into the healthcare and mental health industries is also essential. What better way is there to do that than to join the Clarity Cooperative community?

The Clarity Cooperative is more than just a resource for everything you might need to help improve your private practice. Our community is also a great resource for what’s up and coming in the industry. With thousands of therapists, counselors, and mental health professionals in our community, you’re sure to find out the latest news about AI use in mental health here.

If you need help with adopting AI, who better to turn to for advice than your peers who may already have experience with it?

We hope to see you there.

Yours in service,

Dr. LPJ