Using AI/Mixed Reality in Mental Health/ Healthy Behavior
Imagine you’re a teenager struggling with depression. Every day feels like a battle, and you can’t find any relief. But one day, you come across a new form of therapy that could change your life. This therapy uses artificial intelligence (AI) tools to create a virtual reality experience that immerses you in a new world, helps you learn coping skills, relax, and even interact with realistic holographic characters.
It sounds like science fiction, right? But according to recent studies, this type of therapy using AI and mixed reality could be a game-changer for adolescents struggling with mental health issues. Research shows that technology tools can be an effective and cost-efficient way to deliver mental health services.
But despite the potential benefits of AI and mixed reality therapy, there is still a lack of academic research on how it can improve the well-being of adolescents with depression. That’s where the proposed study comes in. The researchers aim to answer three key questions: how can AI and mixed reality be applied to enhance mental health coping skills? How can it be a positive distraction for teenagers with emotional distress, and how can it stimulate sensory-deprived teenagers?
This study’s results could significantly impact how mental health professionals and policymakers approach the treatment of depression in adolescents. It could also provide hope and a new form of therapy for one in seven teenagers worldwide who experience mental disorders.
Introduction
Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools that facilitate human-computer interaction (HCI) and user experience design (UXD) allow a user to experience 3D imaging (Cham et al., 2021). Some tools, such as virtual reality, use Natural Language Processing (NLP) to incorporate audio and visual feedback and other human senses like vibration, taste, touch, and smell (Noam, 2021). Usually, these AI tools provide a life-size and exciting experience whereby users feel they have been taken elsewhere. Also, AI tools use hologram technology to provide realistic characters that a user can interact with (Cham et al., 2021). The whole experience with AI tools can significantly influence how people feel emotionally. In this view, the proposed study conceptualizes that AI tools can offer a rewarding psychological experience that can positively affect adolescents diagnosed with depression.
Integrate AI and mixed reality therapy with social media platforms to create a more personalized experience for users. Using user data from social media profiles and other sources, AI tools can create customized virtual reality environments and experiences tailored to the individual’s interests and needs. For example, if an adolescent struggles with social anxiety, the AI could create a virtual reality environment that allows the user to practice social interactions and communication skills in a safe and controlled setting.
Incorporating social media data into AI and mixed reality therapy also allows for more personalized recommendations for coping skills, relaxation techniques, and other strategies to improve mental well-being. For example, the AI could suggest mindfulness exercises or activities that align with the user’s interests or hobbies based on their social media profile.
Overall, integrating AI and mixed reality therapy with social media platforms has the potential to provide a more personalized and effective experience for adolescents struggling with mental health issues. However, it is important to consider the potential privacy and ethical implications of using personal data from social media profiles in this way.
Keywords: Artificial Intelligence, Mixed Reality, Mental Illness, Machine Learning, behavior changing,
Background and context
Statistics indicate that, globally, one in seven of 10–19 years old experience mental disorders (WHO, 2021). The leading causes of mental disorders include anxiety and depression. Poor government policies at the macro and micro levels are why suicide is the fourth leading cause of death among individuals aged 15–29 (WHO, 2021). Recent actions by healthcare agencies have focused on addressing the early detection and prevention of depression among teenagers, while there have limited attention paid to docents that are already depressed (Wahid et al., 2021). Among the strategies used to ensure the wellness of depressed individuals include altering personality (e.g., reducing levels of neuroticism and extraversion), applying dispositional optimism by developing resilient attitudes to stress, and increasing the amount and quality of social support (Burešová et al., 2020). Despite teenagers being tech-savvy and known to interact creatively with the latest technologies, there is limited academic attention on the role of AI tools in improving the well-being of adolescents diagnosed with depression.
Problem statement
In line with the current statistics, which show the high prevalence of mental illness among teenagers and the adverse socioeconomic outcomes associated with depression, the proposed study maps the role of AI/Mixed Reality in bringing wellness to adolescents suffering from depression. More specifically, the proposed research preconceives that human-computer interaction (HCI) and user experience design (UXD) can provide a rewarding experience that can positively impact mental well-being. Researchers have confirmed that technology tools can deliver mental health services cost-effectively (Boydell et al., 2014). On the other hand, some researchers (e. g (Figueroa & Aguilera, 2020)) have called on additional research into a mental health technology that could help treat individuals diagnosed with mental health issues. In line with these considerations, the proposed study examines if an immersion into a virtual environment can produce a sensation that can positively impact well-being and offer a training environment where teenagers can learn cognitive strategies, interpersonal skills, relaxation, and mindfulness.
Research questions
The research questions are as follows:
- How can AI/Mixed Reality enhance mental health coping skills (e.g., cognitive strength, interpersonal skills, mindfulness, and relaxation)?
- How can AI/Mixed Reality distract emotionally distressed teenagers positively?
- How can AI/Mixed Reality be used to stimulate sensory-deprived teenagers?
Relevance and importance of the research
The proposed study is relevant because, when completed, its findings will develop a better understanding of the novel and creative ways of treating teenagers’ mental health problems. Drawing on the results, mental health professionals and policymakers will be able to make educated decisions regarding how to use AI tools to improve the mental well-being of teenagers diagnosed with depression. Parents can make evidence-based decisions regarding acquiring AI/Mixed Reality tools such as Virtual Reality and holographic devices. They will better understand why human-computer interaction (HCI) and user experience design (UXD) offer their depressed teenagers that 3D imaging can positively impact mental well-being. Educators will find the findings of this study as they develop curricula that prepare programmers to work in a new era where AI tools could be used for mental health. Programmers will gain by applying the recommendations of the proposed study as they design AI tools that can improve the mental well-being of depressed teenagers. Teenagers will also gain by consciously understanding the importance of interacting with AI/Mixed Reality tools.
Methods and Design
A research design is a detailed plan that guides the research process and entails choosing a quantitative, qualitative, or mixed-method study (Creswell, 2014). The objective of the research design is to provide guidance during the execution of a research study and give direction for analyzing the following data. This will be quantitative descriptive research.
Various types of qualitative designs can be used to explore varieties of phenomena. Also known as design strategies, including a systematic review of literature, case studies, participant observation, and individual and group interviews. This study will align itself with a systematic review of literature which, in the words of (Suri, 2019), is a ‘comprehensive and unbiased synthesis of large numbers of relevant studies within the confines of a single topic using transparent and rigorous methods (p. 12).’ This implies taking a large number of studies relevant to the topic and then combining all these studies into one document. The individual studies will be found in standard online search engines, including Google scholar and academic papers, books, and online articles. This means data will be collected from the reports in the systematic review.
As well as drawing the results from various studies together, data synthesis will consider the strength of evidence of individual studies and explore whether findings regarding the viability of AI tools in helping teenagers diagnosed with depression achieve positive health outcomes and well-being. The narrative analysis, which will examine the data, will begin by presenting a theory or theories of how AI tools work and how they support mental health, summarizing the findings of the individual studies, discussing the relationships between studies, and providing an overall assessment of the strength of evidence as it relates to the problem statement.
Limitations
The limitation relied on a relatively limited number of databases to identify potentially eligible studies to be reviewed.
To solve this limitation, looking at internet sources that ngines suggest will be essential.
References
Bogdan, R., & DeVault, M. (2015). Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods: A Guidebook and Resource. Hoboken, New Jersey, United States: John Wiley & Sons.
Boydell, K. M., Hodgins, M., Pignatiello, A., Teshima, J., Edwards, H., & Willis, D. (2014). Using Technology to Deliver Mental Health Services to Children and Youth: A Scoping Review. J Can Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry., 23(2), 87–99.
Burešová, I., Jelínek, M., & Klimusová, H. (2020). Predictors of Mental Health in Adolescence: The Role of Personality, Dispositional Optimism, and Social Support. SAGE Open, 10(2). Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440209179
Cham, K., Shakiry, R., & Yates, C. (2021). Dual Cognitive UXD and Explainable AI. Journal of Usability Studies, 17(1).
Creswell, J. W. (2014). Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches. SAGE,.
Figueroa, C. A., & Aguilera, A. (2020). The Need for a Mental Health Technology Revolution in the COVID-19 Pandemic. Front. Psychiatry. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00523
Noam, E. (2021). The Content, Impact, and Regulation of Streaming Video: The Next Generation of Media Emerges. Cheltenham, United Kingdom: Edward Elgar Publishing.
Suri, H. (2019). Ethical Considerations of Conducting Systematic Reviews in Educational Research. Systematic Reviews in Educational Research.
Wahid, S. S., Ottman, K., Hudhud, R., Gautam, K., Fisher, H. L., Kieling, C., . . . Kohrta, B. A. (2021). Identifying risk factors and detection strategies for adolescent depression in diverse global settings: A Delphi consensus study. J Affect Disord., 15(279), 66–74. doi:10.1016/j.jad.2020.09.098
WHO. (2021, November 17). Adolescent mental health. Retrieved from WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/adolescent-mental-healt
