Can an algorithm support you through difficult times? Artificial intelligence is opening up new possibilities in emotional well-being care: being available when a therapist cannot, adapting to each individual, and helping people maintain emotional balance in everyday life. It is already beginning to change the way we care for the mind and, by extension, how we make decisions. In this new installment of the “Living Better” series, we speak with Patricia Arean, a clinical psychologist and pioneer in digital mental health interventions.
Over a billion people worldwide suffer from mental health disorders, according to data from the World Health Organization (WHO). Illnesses stemming from these disorders are the world’s second leading cause of long-term disability, reduce healthy life expectancy, and generate high healthcare costs. They also cause major economic losses globally: the UN agency estimates that depression and anxiety, the most common conditions, cost the global economy around one trillion U.S. dollars per year.
Patricia Arean, Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Washington, clinical psychologist, and pioneer in digital mental health interventions, explains that much of the research in this field is still in its early stages. Data on the effectiveness of artificial intelligence remains preliminary, with few studies collecting data “beyond 12 weeks.” Even so, solutions are already being developed within the field of so-called wellness tools, many of which are still going through regulatory processes.
A personalized assistant that helps you self-analyze
Arean suggests that people perceive AI as a highly useful guide for finding information to help solve problems or improve their mood. “People don't use AI in the same way they use traditional therapy. Instead of speaking with a therapist once a week, people use artificial intelligence frequently, every day; then they stop using it altogether, and later return to using it on a daily basis,” she explains. AI functions as on-demand support for everyday problems: people turn to it when things get complicated; when everything is going well, they stop using it until they need it again.
In a study titled “Artificial Intelligence and Its Impact on Human Psychology,” published in the journal Mediciencias of the Technical University of Ambato in Ecuador, Dr. Luis Fabián Salazar-Garcés and Dr. Diana Catalina Velastegui-Hernández state that AI is already capable of providing therapies, personalized treatments, and interventions fully tailored to each patient’s needs, with complete availability: 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. In this way, access to mental health services could become universal.
Patricia Arean emphasizes that most people don't see AI as a replacement, but rather as a complement. She gives the example of her own country: “Because of the limited number of mental health therapists we have in the United States, we invest in complementary care, from peer support to coaches who work alongside a therapist. Artificial intelligence could also play that role,” the expert explains, before concluding: “AI could in the future serve as an educator, or as temporary support while patients wait for their appointment with a therapist.”
This scenario is already taking place in other countries: in the UK, the National Health Service (NHS) provides patients with information about their condition and current situation while they wait for a medical appointment with their therapist. “This type of support is another possible positive use of artificial intelligence,” adds the researcher from the University of Washington.
“AI could in the future serve as an educator or as temporary support while patients wait for their appointment with a therapist.”
However, specialists such as Pere Castellvi, professor in the Department of Medicine at the Universitat Internacional de Catalunya (UIC), warn that the human factor, professional judgment, clinical expertise and experience, and the relationship between patient and professional are aspects that can never be replaced. “AI has no independent judgment or real understanding of truth: it is subject to hallucinations, errors, biases, bad advice, and discrimination. We should critically analyze the responses it provides,” warns Castellvi in an article by the Science Media Centre España.
The Ecuadorian researchers argue that AI remains nothing more than a simulation, an approximation of reality lacking the complete, human, and genuine empathy needed to understand people in a holistic way. For that reason, they believe that, over time, patients may become distrustful and the process may fall into misunderstandings.
Mental health, AI, and finance: an unexpected relationship
AI may help eradicate mental health disorders that affect every aspect of life, including personal finances. There is evidence that people perform better at work and in life when they are calm, content, and happy. Patricia Arean agrees that when people feel well, they make better decisions. The key lies in cognitive load.
Depression and anxiety generate countless distracting stimuli that make it difficult to focus on other tasks, such as work or household responsibilities. In addition, the expert explains, they worsen both the quantity and quality of rest because they lead to fatigue, drowsiness, irritability...
“As for financial decisions... If you are tired and under too much strain, then yes, you may also make poor decisions in that area. There is even an observed increase in impulsive online shopping as a way of compensating for one’s mood. But even happy people sometimes make bad decisions,” she concludes with a touch of irony.
Various studies, such as the analysis “Money and Happiness: Extended Evidence Against Satiation” by Matt Killingsworth, PhD and researcher at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, show that higher income is generally associated with greater happiness. However, the relationship between money and happiness is neither linear nor unlimited.
Against this backdrop, artificial intelligence is beginning to position itself as a support tool in mental health care. But one thing is clear: a balanced mind makes better decisions. In finances as well.