Young people's perceptions and recommendations for conversational generative artificial intelligence in youth mental health
For developers and mental health service providers, this work provides qualitative insights and co-designed requirements to guide the design and implementation of genAI chatbots for youth mental health.
This study explored young people's perceptions of a generative AI chatbot (Mia) for youth mental health through co-design workshops with 32 participants, identifying four key themes and co-developing recommendations for ethical and effective integration into services.
Conversational generative artificial intelligence agents (or genAI chatbots) could benefit youth mental health, yet young people's perspectives remain underexplored. We examined the Mental health Intelligence Agent (Mia), a genAI chatbot originally designed for professionals in Australian youth services. Following co-design, 32 young people participated in online workshops exploring their perceptions of genAI chatbots in youth mental health and to develop recommendations for reconceptualising Mia for consumers and integrating it into services. Four themes were developed: (1) Humanising AI without dehumanising care, (2) I need to know what's under the hood, (3) Right tool, right place, right time?, and (4) Making it mine on safe ground. This study offers insights into young people's attitudes, needs, and requirements regarding genAI chatbots in youth mental health, with key implications for service integration. Additionally, by co-designing system requirements, this work informs the ethics, design, development, implementation, and governance of genAI chatbots in youth mental health contexts.