Conversational agents and the making of mental health recovery.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Artificial intelligence (AI) is said to be "transforming mental health". AI-based technologies and technique are now considered to have uses in almost every domain of mental health care: including decision-making, assessment and healthcare management. What remains underexplored is whether/how mental health recovery is situated within these discussions and practices.

Method

Taking conversational agents as our point of departure, we explore the ways official online materials explain and make sense of chatbots, their imagined functionality and value for (potential) users. We focus on three chatbots for mental health: Woebot, Wysa and Tess.

Findings

"Recovery" is largely missing as an overt focus across materials. However, analysis does reveal themes tha

SUBMITTER: Meadows R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7683843 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jan-Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature