TY - JOUR
T1 - AI-Based and Digital Mental Health Apps
T2 - Balancing Need and Risk
AU - Hamdoun, Salah
AU - Monteleone, Rebecca
AU - Bookman, Terri
AU - Michael, Katina
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 1982-2012 IEEE.
PY - 2023/3/1
Y1 - 2023/3/1
N2 - Mental health and well-being are increasingly important topics in discussions on public health [1]. The COVID-19 pandemic further revealed critical gaps in existing mental health services as factors such as job losses and corresponding financial issues, prolonged physical illness and death, and physical isolation led to a sharp rise in mental health conditions [2]. As such, there is increasing interest in the viability and desirability of digital mental health applications. While these dedicated applications vary widely, from platforms that connect users with healthcare professionals to diagnostic tools to self-assessments, this article specifically explores the implications of digital mental health applications in the form of chatbots [3]. Chatbots can be text based or voice enabled and may be rule based (i.e., linguistics based) or based on machine learning (ML). They can utilize the power of conversational agents well-suited to task-oriented interactions, like Apple's Siri, Amazon's Alexa, or Google Assistant. But increasingly, chatbot developers are leveraging conversational artificial intelligence (AI), which is the suite of tools and techniques that allow a computer program to seemingly carry out a conversational experience with a person or a group.
AB - Mental health and well-being are increasingly important topics in discussions on public health [1]. The COVID-19 pandemic further revealed critical gaps in existing mental health services as factors such as job losses and corresponding financial issues, prolonged physical illness and death, and physical isolation led to a sharp rise in mental health conditions [2]. As such, there is increasing interest in the viability and desirability of digital mental health applications. While these dedicated applications vary widely, from platforms that connect users with healthcare professionals to diagnostic tools to self-assessments, this article specifically explores the implications of digital mental health applications in the form of chatbots [3]. Chatbots can be text based or voice enabled and may be rule based (i.e., linguistics based) or based on machine learning (ML). They can utilize the power of conversational agents well-suited to task-oriented interactions, like Apple's Siri, Amazon's Alexa, or Google Assistant. But increasingly, chatbot developers are leveraging conversational artificial intelligence (AI), which is the suite of tools and techniques that allow a computer program to seemingly carry out a conversational experience with a person or a group.
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U2 - 10.1109/MTS.2023.3241309
DO - 10.1109/MTS.2023.3241309
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85150073532
SN - 0278-0097
VL - 42
SP - 25
EP - 36
JO - IEEE Technology and Society Magazine
JF - IEEE Technology and Society Magazine
IS - 1
ER -