AI: A Tool for Therapists, Not a Replacement for Them

A recent study found that 1 in 8 U.S. adolescents and young adults use AI chatbots for mental health advice. How safe is it to use these chatbots without or along with human therapists? Our guest experts for this episode are Nicole Noble, Ph.D., an an assistant professor in the TTUHSC School of Health Professions and therapist in the Your Life Behavioral Health and Wellness Clinic and David Pfaff, Ph.D., a clinical mental health therapist with the School of Health Professions Clinical Mental Health Counseling program. Their insight on this topic will hopefully lead listeners to understand what to expect from these everyday chatbots, how we can use them as a tool to help with therapy, how therapists themselves use AI and why this is still one of those professional services that is best handled by a human.