Efficacy of a Conversational AI Agent for Psychiatric Symptoms and Digital Therapeutic Alliance: A Randomized Clinical Trial - PubMed
3 hours ago
- #Mental Health
- #Randomized Trial
- #Conversational AI
- A randomized clinical trial evaluated a conversational AI-based mental health platform for treating psychiatric symptoms in university students with psychological distress.
- Participants were assigned to a 12-week AI conversational platform, face-to-face group therapy, or a waiting list control group.
- The AI group showed greater reductions in anxiety compared to both group therapy and control, and greater reductions in depression compared to control.
- No significant differences were found among groups for PTSD symptoms.
- The AI group also demonstrated greater improvements in well-being and life satisfaction than the other groups.
- Perceived therapeutic alliance was associated with higher user engagement and symptom improvement in the AI intervention.
- The findings suggest conversational AI can be a scalable resource for mental health care, potentially addressing global access gaps.