Researchers at Stanford (Calif.) Medicine are making strides in telepsychiatry, according to Business Insider.
Woebot, the brainchild of Stanford clinical psychologist Alison Darcy, PhD, is an artificial intelligence chatbot that provides cognitive-behavioral therapy — a clinical approach to addressing anxiety and depression — over Facebook's Messenger app.
Woebot uses CBT to highlight users' negative self talk, which Business Insider says leads to seeing "the environment around them in a distorted way." The chatbot then redirects users toward more positive thoughts.
The results of the two-week trial of Woebot, published in JMIR Mental Health June 6, were promising, Dr. Darcy told Business Insider. Study participants reported using the Woebot service almost every day, and they also noted a significant decline in their symptoms of depression.
Click here to view the full study.
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