How AI can help people be more empathetic about mental health

Empathy is critical to having supportive conversations about mental health. But this skill can be tricky to learn, especially in the moment when a person is sharing something hard. A team led by researchers at the University of Washington studied how artificial intelligence could help people on the platform TalkLife, where people give each other mental health support. The researchers developed an AI system that suggested changes to participants' responses to make them more empathetic. The system helped people communicate empathy more effectively than traditional training did.