-
Journal of Medical Internet Research May 2019Research in embodied artificial intelligence (AI) has increasing clinical relevance for therapeutic applications in mental health services. With innovations ranging from... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Research in embodied artificial intelligence (AI) has increasing clinical relevance for therapeutic applications in mental health services. With innovations ranging from 'virtual psychotherapists' to social robots in dementia care and autism disorder, to robots for sexual disorders, artificially intelligent virtual and robotic agents are increasingly taking on high-level therapeutic interventions that used to be offered exclusively by highly trained, skilled health professionals. In order to enable responsible clinical implementation, ethical and social implications of the increasing use of embodied AI in mental health need to be identified and addressed.
OBJECTIVE
This paper assesses the ethical and social implications of translating embodied AI applications into mental health care across the fields of Psychiatry, Psychology and Psychotherapy. Building on this analysis, it develops a set of preliminary recommendations on how to address ethical and social challenges in current and future applications of embodied AI.
METHODS
Based on a thematic literature search and established principles of medical ethics, an analysis of the ethical and social aspects of currently embodied AI applications was conducted across the fields of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Psychotherapy. To enable a comprehensive evaluation, the analysis was structured around the following three steps: assessment of potential benefits; analysis of overarching ethical issues and concerns; discussion of specific ethical and social issues of the interventions.
RESULTS
From an ethical perspective, important benefits of embodied AI applications in mental health include new modes of treatment, opportunities to engage hard-to-reach populations, better patient response, and freeing up time for physicians. Overarching ethical issues and concerns include: harm prevention and various questions of data ethics; a lack of guidance on development of AI applications, their clinical integration and training of health professionals; 'gaps' in ethical and regulatory frameworks; the potential for misuse including using the technologies to replace established services, thereby potentially exacerbating existing health inequalities. Specific challenges identified and discussed in the application of embodied AI include: matters of risk-assessment, referrals, and supervision; the need to respect and protect patient autonomy; the role of non-human therapy; transparency in the use of algorithms; and specific concerns regarding long-term effects of these applications on understandings of illness and the human condition.
CONCLUSIONS
We argue that embodied AI is a promising approach across the field of mental health; however, further research is needed to address the broader ethical and societal concerns of these technologies to negotiate best research and medical practices in innovative mental health care. We conclude by indicating areas of future research and developing recommendations for high-priority areas in need of concrete ethical guidance.
Topics: Artificial Intelligence; Humans; Psychiatry; Psychology; Psychotherapy; Robotics
PubMed: 31094356
DOI: 10.2196/13216 -
Frontiers in Public Health 2021
Topics: Behavioral Medicine; Delay Discounting; Economics, Behavioral
PubMed: 33791273
DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2021.658808 -
Progress in Neuro-psychopharmacology &... Mar 2021Since the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was announced, we had an unprecedented... (Review)
Review
Since the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was announced, we had an unprecedented change in the way we organize ourselves socially and in our daily routine. Children and adolescents were also greatly impacted by the abrupt withdrawal from school, social life and outdoor activities. Some of them also experienced domestic violence growing. The stress they are subjected to directly impacts their mental health on account of increased anxiety, changes in their diets and in school dynamics, fear or even failing to scale the problem. Our aim is to bring up a discussion under different aspects and to alert public health and government agents about the need for surveillance and care of these individuals. We hope that the damage to their mental health as a result of the side effect of this pandemic can be mitigated by adequate and timely intervention.
Topics: Adolescent; COVID-19; Child; Child, Preschool; Female; Health Status; Humans; Infant; Male; Mental Health; Pandemics; Psychology, Adolescent; Psychology, Child; Schools; Social Environment
PubMed: 33186638
DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2020.110171 -
Topics in Cognitive Science Apr 2018Miscommunication is a neglected issue in the cognitive sciences, where it has often been discounted as noise in the system. This special issue argues for the opposite...
Miscommunication is a neglected issue in the cognitive sciences, where it has often been discounted as noise in the system. This special issue argues for the opposite view: Miscommunication is a highly structured and ubiquitous feature of human interaction that systematically underpins people's ability to create and maintain shared languages. Contributions from conversation analysis, computational linguistics, experimental psychology, and formal semantics provide evidence for these claims. They highlight the multi-modal, multi-person character of miscommunication. They demonstrate the incremental, contingent, and locally adaptive nature of the processes people use to detect and deal with miscommunication. They show how these processes can drive language change. In doing so, these contributions introduce an alternative perspective on what successful communication is, new methods for studying it, and application areas where these ideas have a particular impact. We conclude that miscommunication is not noise but essential to the productive flexibility of human communication, especially our ability to respond constructively to new people and new situations.
Topics: Cognitive Science; Communication; Humans
PubMed: 29749040
DOI: 10.1111/tops.12340 -
Perspectives on Psychological Science :... Nov 2017Psychology has historically been concerned, first and foremost, with explaining the causal mechanisms that give rise to behavior. Randomized, tightly controlled... (Review)
Review
Psychology has historically been concerned, first and foremost, with explaining the causal mechanisms that give rise to behavior. Randomized, tightly controlled experiments are enshrined as the gold standard of psychological research, and there are endless investigations of the various mediating and moderating variables that govern various behaviors. We argue that psychology's near-total focus on explaining the causes of behavior has led much of the field to be populated by research programs that provide intricate theories of psychological mechanism but that have little (or unknown) ability to predict future behaviors with any appreciable accuracy. We propose that principles and techniques from the field of machine learning can help psychology become a more predictive science. We review some of the fundamental concepts and tools of machine learning and point out examples where these concepts have been used to conduct interesting and important psychological research that focuses on predictive research questions. We suggest that an increased focus on prediction, rather than explanation, can ultimately lead us to greater understanding of behavior.
Topics: Humans; Machine Learning; Psychology
PubMed: 28841086
DOI: 10.1177/1745691617693393 -
Upsala Journal of Medical Sciences Dec 2018Personality disorders (PDs) can be described as the manifestation of extreme personality traits that interfere with everyday life and contribute to significant... (Review)
Review
Personality disorders (PDs) can be described as the manifestation of extreme personality traits that interfere with everyday life and contribute to significant suffering, functional limitations, or both. They are common and are frequently encountered in virtually all forms of health care. PDs are associated with an inferior quality of life (QoL), poor health, and premature mortality. The aetiology of PDs is complex and is influenced by genetic and environmental factors. The clinical expression varies between different PD types; the most common and core aspect is related to an inability to build and maintain healthy interpersonal relationships. This aspect has a negative impact on the interaction between health-care professionals and patients with a PD. From being discrete and categorical disease entities in previous classification systems, the current concept of PD, reflected in the newly proposed ICD-11, is a dimensional description based on the severity of the disturbed functioning rather than on the type of clinical presentation. Insight about the characteristics of PDs among medical practitioners is limited, which is partly because persons do not seek health care for their PD, but instead for other medical issues which are obscured by their underlying personality problems. What needs to be emphasized is that PDs affect both the clinical presentation of other medical problems, and the outcome of these, in a negative manner and that the integrated effects of having a PD are a shortened life expectancy. Accordingly, PDs need to be recognized in clinical practice to a greater extent than previously.
Topics: Adult; Comorbidity; Female; History, 20th Century; History, 21st Century; Humans; International Classification of Diseases; Male; Personality; Personality Disorders; Psychiatry; Psychology; Quality of Life; Young Adult
PubMed: 30539674
DOI: 10.1080/03009734.2018.1526235 -
Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews Dec 2018Play is of vital importance for the healthy development of children. From a developmental perspective, play offers ample physical, emotional, cognitive, and social... (Review)
Review
Play is of vital importance for the healthy development of children. From a developmental perspective, play offers ample physical, emotional, cognitive, and social benefits. It allows children and adolescents to develop motor skills, experiment with their (social) behavioural repertoire, simulate alternative scenarios, and address the various positive and negative consequences of their behaviour in a safe and engaging context. Children with a chronic or life-threatening disease may face obstacles that negatively impact play and play development, possibly impeding developmental milestones, beyond the actual illness itself. Currently, there is limited understanding of the impact of (1) aberrant or suppressed play and (2) play-related interventions on the development of chronic diseased children. We argue that stimulating play behaviour enhances the adaptability of a child to a (chronic) stressful condition and promotes cognitive, social, emotional and psychomotor functioning, thereby strengthening the basis for their future health. Systematic play research will help to develop interventions for young patients, to better cope with the negative consequences of their illness and stimulate healthy development.
Topics: Adaptation, Psychological; Animals; Child; Child Development; Chronic Disease; Humans; Play and Playthings; Psychology, Child
PubMed: 30273634
DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2018.09.024 -
Pediatric Blood & Cancer Dec 2015Parents and caregivers of children with cancer are both resilient and deeply affected by the child's cancer. A systematic review of published research since 1995... (Review)
Review
Parents and caregivers of children with cancer are both resilient and deeply affected by the child's cancer. A systematic review of published research since 1995 identified 138 studies of moderate quality indicating that parent distress increases around diagnosis, then returns to normal levels. Post-traumatic symptoms are common. Distress may be impairing for vulnerable parents and may impact a child's coping and adjustment. Moderate quality evidence and expert consensus informed a strong recommendation for parents and caregivers to receive early and ongoing assessment of their mental health needs with access to appropriate interventions facilitated to optimize parent, child, and family well being.
Topics: Child; Humans; Neoplasms; Parents; Psychology; Standard of Care; Stress, Psychological
PubMed: 26700921
DOI: 10.1002/pbc.25761 -
Psychiatria Polska Dec 2017The article discusses the development of psychoanalytic theory in the direction of broadening the reflection on their own based on data derived from empirical studies... (Review)
Review
The article discusses the development of psychoanalytic theory in the direction of broadening the reflection on their own based on data derived from empirical studies other than clinical case study. Particularly noteworthy is the convergence that followed between neuroscience and psychoanalysis and the rise of the so-called neuropsychoanalysis. Consequently, this led to eject empirical hypotheses and begin research on defense mechanisms, self, memory, dreams, empathy, dynamic unconscious and emotional-motivational processes (theory of drives). Currently neuropsychoanalysis constituted itself as a discipline contained in itself three separate areas: the psychodynamic neuroscience, clinical neuropsychoanalysis and theory building. The article introduces the theory of Jaak Panksepp emotional systems as an example of anintegrated neurobiology of affect, behavioral biology, evolutionary psychology and psychoanalysis. The theory of emotional systems includes the description of the SEEKING system representing basic motivational system of the organism. Apart from a new perspective on the theory of drives described by Sigmund Freud, it offers the possibility to take into account the emotional and motivational systems within the understanding of mental disorders such as depression, addiction and psychosis, which is the core of psychoanalytic thinking.
Topics: Emotions; History, 19th Century; History, 20th Century; History, 21st Century; Humans; Interdisciplinary Communication; Neurosciences; Psychoanalysis; Psychoanalytic Theory; Psychoanalytic Therapy; Psychology
PubMed: 29432512
DOI: 10.12740/PP/61781 -
Archives of Sexual Behavior Feb 2020Transgender and gender diverse (TGD) people are disproportionately impacted by various health issues and associated risk factors, but little is known about differences...
Transgender and gender diverse (TGD) people are disproportionately impacted by various health issues and associated risk factors, but little is known about differences in these outcomes between gender identities within the TGD population. This study characterized the health of a diverse sample of TGD youth and young adults. Data were taken from the baseline visit of two longitudinal studies in the Chicago area, RADAR (N = 1079, M age = 20.8 years) and FAB 400 (N = 488, M age = 19.57 years), which are cohorts of young sexual and gender minorities assigned male at birth (AMAB) and assigned female at birth (AFAB), respectively. There was a combined sample of 214 TGD (128 AFAB, 86 AMAB) individuals across cohorts. We examined differences between gender identities in self-reported health and related psychosocial variables, and compared TGD youth and their cisgender sexual minority peers from their cohort of origin on all variables. Among TGD youth, we found high rates of depression and suicidality (ideation, plan, attempt), violence (trauma, victimization, childhood sexual abuse), and substance use (cigarette, alcohol, illicit drug use). With the exception of depression, transgender women and non-binary AMAB youth reported worse health outcomes than transgender men and non-binary AFAB youth. Non-binary AMAB youth reported the highest rates of certain outcomes, including traumatic experiences and suicidal ideation. TGD youth generally reported worse outcomes than cisgender sexual minority youth; these differences were less pronounced among AFAB youth. Findings point to the diversity of experiences within the TGD population and critical needs for intervention approaches to mitigate health disparities.
Topics: Adult; Cohort Studies; Female; Gender Identity; Humans; Male; Mental Health; Psychology; Risk Factors; Substance-Related Disorders; Transgender Persons; Violence; Young Adult
PubMed: 31485801
DOI: 10.1007/s10508-019-01533-9