ChatBots are having a significant impact in numerous fields, especially in the psychology sector.
Although developers caution that these technologies are not a replacement for human interactions with experts, ChatBots are an 24/7 available resource, which is not the case for human health professionals.
A ChatBot used for psychological therapies aims to be the first line of support for mental health patients, with a focus in privacy and anonymity. These applications, were developed to proactively monitor patients, be ready to listen and chat anytime, anywhere, and recommend activities to improve the well-being of users.
Of course, they will never replace a real psychologist, but they really do a great job, and the help they provide is quite useful.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is often applied to find solutions for specific conditions such as anxiety, depression, substance abuse, obsessive compulsive disorder, etc.
Many chatbots specialized in the area of mental health have recently been created, whose conversational format can help to apply this type of therapy, available to users 24/7.
Cognitive behavioral therapy, or CBT, focuses on thoughts and behaviors that are negative or in some way feed a mental condition. The principle of this type of therapy is that changes in the way of thinking and acting affect how the person feels.
Currently, there are many exercises and experiments that modify thinking and behavior for deep transformation. It is not very difficult to put these changes or systematized corrections into practice, however, it is always advisable to have a specialized therapist with whom the person can eventually meet to check the progress or the state of the person regarding the condition.
Although chatbots are not intended to replace human professionals, their job is to make information more accessible in all sectors through the conversational interface. In that regard, many mental health chatbots have been developed that can listen to what the patient has to say and give a recommendation accordingly.
In other words, they are able to do some therapist work.
These conversational interfaces are designed by artificial intelligence specialists with the intense collaboration of psychologists and therapists. As a team, they develop a set of conversational exchanges that help the user to go through the CBT practice.
The bot's job from the beginning is to challenge distorted thinking, then encourages them to express their moods more clearly. AI is specially trained to understand feelings, identify them even better than the person who expresses them.
Chatbots are specially designed for continuous learning, that is, when more users interact with them, eventually they will be able to be more precise in their recommendations and diagnoses.
All software can fail, especially if you face situations as complex as a hidden warnings or red flags that a person wants to harm themself but does not say it directly, for example.
So chatbots must be maintained and updated for continuous learning. The truth is that chatbots will be able to become a better therapist aid as they face new problems and solve them successfully.
