PRE2024 3 Group17

Students

Names	Student number	Mail
Bridget Ariese	1670115	b.ariese@student.tue.nl
Sophie de Swart	2047470	s.a.m.d.swart@student.tue.nl
Mila van Bokhoven	1754238	m.m.v.bokhoven1@student.tue.nl
Marie	1739530	m.a.a.bellemakers@student.tue.nl
Maarten	1639439	m.g.a.v.d.loo@student.tue.nl
Bram van der Heijden	1448137	b.v.d.heijden1@student.tue.nl

Task division

Name	Week 1	Total time spent
Bridget	State of the art (6 art)
Sophie	State of the art (3/4 art) + Problem Statement
Mila	State of the art (3/4 art) + Users, Milestones, Deliverables, task Division
Marie	State of the art (3/4 art) + Approach
Maarten	State of the art (6 art)
Bram	State of the art (3/4 art) + User Requirements

After the tutor meeting on Monday, we’ll meet as a group to go over the tasks for the coming weeks. Based on any feedback or new insights from the meeting, we’ll divide the work in a way that makes sense for everyone. Each week, we’ll check in, see how things are going, and adjust if needed to keep things on track. This way, we make sure the workload is shared fairly and everything gets done on time.

TO DO week 1

problem statement: long waiting times for psychologists ... (sophie)

users: Our users are students who are struggling with mental health challenges like loneliness, depression, anxiety, and stress but feel like their issues aren’t "serious enough" to see a psychologist.

user requirements: (bram)

approach: eigen gpt maken in chatgpt? ... (marie)

deliverables: We will write a report with a literature review and either quantitative or qualitative research, plus a presentation to share our findings. On top of that, we might build a custom GPT and train it as a product if it fits the project.

Problem statement

In this project we will be researching mental health challenges, specifically focusing on stress and loneliness, and exploring how robots could assist people with such problems. Mental health concerns are on the rise, with stress and loneliness being particularly prevalent in today's society. Factors such as the rapid rise of social media channels and the increasing usage of technology in our everyday life contribute to higher levels of emotional distress.

Seeking professional help can be a difficult step to take due to stigma, accessibility issues and financial constraints. Robots as well as Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies might be solutions to bridge this gap between those who require help and the availability of mental health resources.

Beyond individual use, robots could be introduced in the therapeutic field, assisting professionals by monitoring patients' well-being over time, collecting data, or providing guided therapy sessions in structured environments. They could provide emotional support in way that is easier accessible and cost-effective.

Through this project, we aim to explore the potential benefits, limitations and ethical considerations of integrating robots into the mental health support system. By analyzing existing technologies, exploring user needs and potentially implementing existing limitations into new prototypes, we hope to find insights that are valuable to how robotics can positively impact mental well-being in an increasingly technology-driven world.

Milestones

Week 1

- mail sturen met topic en groep

- project setup

Week 2

background research + write introduction

Week 3

prepare interviews/survey + write lit review

Week 4

do interviews/survey

Week 5

analyse interviews

Week 6

write result section

Week 7

write discussion

Week 8

prepare presentation + finish up report

Literature Review

State of the art (25 articles): (3/4 pp, Maarten en Bridget 6)

Mila:

- Zhang, J., & Chen, T. (2025). Artificial intelligence based social robots in the process of student mental health diagnosis. Entertainment Computing, 52, 100799. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.entcom.2024.100799

- Eltahawy, L., Essig, T., Myszkowski, N., & Trub, L. (2023). Can robots do therapy?: Examining the efficacy of a CBT bot in comparison with other behavioral intervention technologies in alleviating mental health symptoms. Computers in Human Behavior: Artificial Humans, 2(1), 100035. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chbah.2023.100035

- Jeong, S., Aymerich-Franch, L., Arias, K. et al. Deploying a robotic positive psychology coach to improve college students’ psychological well-being. User Model User-Adap Inter 33, 571–615 (2023). https://doi-org.dianus.libr.tue.nl/10.1007/s11257-022-09337-8

- Edwards, A., Edwards, C., Abendschein, B., Espinosa, J., Scherger, J. and Vander Meer, P. (2022), "Using robot animal companions in the academic library to mitigate student stress", Library Hi Tech, Vol. 40 No. 4, pp. 878-893. https://doi.org/10.1108/LHT-07-2020-0148

Sophie:

Velastegui, D., Pérez, M. L. R., & Garcés, L. F. S. (2023). Impact of Artificial Intelligence on learning behaviors and psychological well-being of college students. Salud, Ciencia y Tecnologia-Serie de Conferencias, (2), 343.

This article assesses how interaction with technology affect college student’s well-being. Educational technology designers must integrate psychological theories and principles in the development of AI tools to minimize the risks of student’s mental well-being.

Lillywhite, B., & Wolbring, G. (2024). Auditing the impact of artificial intelligence on the ability to have a good life: Using well-being measures as a tool to investigate the views of undergraduate STEM students. AI & society, 39(3), 1427-1442.

This article investigates the impact of artificial intelligence on the ability to have a good life. They focus on students in the STEM majors. The authors found a set of questions that might be good starting points to develop an inventory of students’ perspectives on the implications of AI on the ability to have a good life.

Pittman, M., & Reich, B. (2016). Social media and loneliness: Why an Instagram picture may be worth more than a thousand Twitter words. Computers in human behavior, 62, 155-167.

This article examines if there is a difference between image-based social media use and text-based media use regarding loneliness. The results suggest that loneliness may decrease, while happiness and satisfaction with life may increase with the usage of image-based social media. Text-based media use appears ineffectual. The authors propose that this difference may be due to the fact that image-based social media offers enhanced intimacy.

O’Day, E. B., & Heimberg, R. G. (2021). Social media use, social anxiety, and loneliness: A systematic review. Computers in Human Behavior Reports, 3, 100070.

This article examines the broad aspects of social media use and its relation to social anxiety and loneliness. It provides a better understanding of how more socially anxious and lonely individuals use social media. Loneliness is a risk factor for problematic social media use, and social anxiety and loneliness both have the potential to put people at a risk of experiencing negative consequences as a result of their social media use. More research needs to be done to examine the causal relations.

Bridget:

Socially Assistive Robotics combined with Artificial Intelligence for ADHD. (2021, 9 januari). IEEE Conference Publication | IEEE Xplore. https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/9369633

This paper presents a patient-centered therapy approach using the Pepper humanoid robot to support children with attention deficit. Pepper integrates a tablet for interactive exercises and cameras to capture real-time emotional data, allowing for personalized therapeutic adjustments. The system, tested in collaboration with a diagnostic center, enhances children's engagement by providing a non-intimidating robotic intermediary.

BetterHelp - Get started & Sign-Up today. (z.d.). https://www.betterhelp.com/get-started/?go=true&utm_source=AdWords&utm_medium=Search_PPC_c&utm_term=betterhelp_e&utm_content=161518778316&network=g&placement=&target=&matchtype=e&utm_campaign=21223585199&ad_type=text&adposition=&kwd_id=kwd-300752210814&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAzba9BhBhEiwA7glbasw7PG1fxUn6i-hXi0CPIHNrD_1VB3F6SF7OPBtBi8pw0-H0ntSblRoCEa8QAvD_BwE¬_found=1&gor=start

Better help is an online therapy platform that eases access to psychological help.

'Er zijn nog 80.000 wachtenden voor u' | Zorgvisie

Fiske, A., Henningsen, P., & Buyx, A. (2019). Your Robot Therapist Will See You Now: Ethical Implications of Embodied Artificial Intelligence in Psychiatry, Psychology, and Psychotherapy. Journal Of Medical Internet Research, 21(5), e13216. https://doi.org/10.2196/13216

This paper assesses the ethical and social implications of translating embodied AI applications into mental health care across the fields of Psychiatry, Psychology and Psychotherapy. Building on this analysis, it develops a set of preliminary recommendations on how to address ethical and social challenges in current and future applications of embodied AI.

Kuhail, M. A., Alturki, N., Thomas, J., Alkhalifa, A. K., & Alshardan, A. (2024). Human-Human vs Human-AI Therapy: An Empirical Study. International Journal Of Human-Computer Interaction, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1080/10447318.2024.2385001

This study examines mental health professionals' perceptions of Pi, a relational AI chatbot, in early-stage psychotherapy. Therapists struggled to distinguish between human-AI and human-human therapy transcripts, correctly identifying them only 53.9% of the time, while rating AI transcripts as higher quality on average. These findings suggest that AI chatbots could play a supportive role in mental healthcare, particularly for initial problem exploration when therapist availability is limited.

Holohan, M., & Fiske, A. (2021). “Like I’m Talking to a Real Person”: Exploring the Meaning of Transference for the Use and Design of AI-Based Applications in Psychotherapy. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.720476

This article explores the evolving role of AI-enabled therapy in psychotherapy, particularly focusing on how AI-driven technologies reshape the concept of transference in therapeutic relationships. Using Karen Barad’s framework on human–non-human relations, the authors argue that AI-human interactions in psychotherapy are more complex than simple information exchanges. As AI-based therapy tools become more widespread, it is crucial to reconsider their ethical, social, and clinical implications for both psychotherapeutic practice and AI development.

Maarten:

Humanoid Robot Intervention vs. Treatment as Usual for Loneliness in Older Adults

This study investigates the effectiveness of humanoid robots in reducing loneliness among older adults. Findings suggest that interactions with social robots can positively impact mental health by decreasing feelings of loneliness.

Citation:

Bemelmans, R., Gelderblom, G. J., Jonker, P., & De Witte, L. (2022). Humanoid robot intervention vs. treatment as usual for loneliness in older adults: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Medical Internet Research [1]

Enhancing University Students' Mental Health under Artificial Intelligence: A Narrative Review

This review discusses how AI-based interventions can be as effective as traditional therapy in managing stress and anxiety among students, offering convenience and less stigma.

Citation:

Li, J., Wang, X., & Zhang, H. (2024). Enhancing university students' mental health under artificial intelligence: A narrative review. LIDSEN Neurobiology, 8(2), 225. [2]

Artificial Intelligence Significantly Facilitates Development in the Field of College Student Mental Health

The article explores key applications of AI in student mental health, including risk factor identification, prediction, assessment, clustering and digital health.

Citation:

Yang, T., Chen, L., & Huang, Y. (2024). Artificial intelligence significantly facilitates development in the field of college student mental health. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, 1375294. [3]

A Robotic Positive Psychology Coach to Improve College Students' Wellbeing

This study examines the use of a social robot coach to offer positive psychological interventions to students, finding significant improvements in psychological well-being and mood.

Citation:

Jeong, S., Aymerich-Franch, L., & Arias, K. (2020). A robotic positive psychology coach to improve college students' well-being. arXiv preprint arXiv:2009.03829. [4]

Potential Applications of Social Robots in Robot-Assisted Interventions

This research discusses how social robots can be integrated into interventions to alleviate symptoms of anxiety, stress and depression by increasing the ability to regulate emotions.

Citation:

Winkle, K., Caleb-Solly, P., Turton, A., & Bremner, P. (2021). Potential applications of social robots in robot-assisted interventions. International Journal of Social Robotics, 13, 123–145. [5]

Exploring the Effects of User-Agent and User-Designer Similarity in Virtual Human Design to Promote Mental Health Intentions for College Students

The study examines how the design of virtual people can affect their effectiveness in promoting conversations about mental health among students.

Citation

Liu, Y., Chen, Z., & Wu, D. (2024). Exploring the effects of user-agent and user-designer similarity in virtual human design to promote mental health intentions for college students. arXiv preprint arXiv:2405.07418. [6]