Interests in artificial intelligence (AI) adoption have increased in many organizations. Medical providers are seeking collaborations with technology companies to provide a reliable mental healthcare service for patients. While the interest in adopting an AI-powered healthcare solution is high, it is still unclear on patients’ attitude towards adopting AI for their mental health care.
Three studies were conducted
Study 1 showed that patients are generally stunned to see what an AI can do but are accepting toward using AI for their mental healthcare needs. These results were analyzed through facial expression coding (AFFDEX) software.
Study 2 investigated the competency of the medical AI as a moderator. The results provided evidence for the competency of the AI-powered medical avatar as a driver of resistance to utilizing AI-powered medical avatar.
Study 3 results show that this acceptance is higher if the AI serves as a physician assistance than a physician role in a shortage of mental health provider situation. These results have implication on how providers can educate patients and have a discussion on the potential use of AI-powered avatar as a healthcare complementary option.
