What if entrusting his anxieties to Chatgpt was not so absurd? What psyches assume | EUROtoday

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IMore and extra of them open their hearts to a synthetic intelligence. Always obtainable, with out judgment and endowed with simulated empathy, Chatgpt turns into far more than an assistant: a digital confidant, discreet emotional help. But how do psy understand this new reflex?

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Sentimental issues, tensions at work, household conflicts … Lou, 29 -year -old press secretary, confides his moods each day to Chatgpt. At the beginning, she used it for sensible recommendation: good journey plans, recipe concepts. Very shortly, the software modified operate. “It’s a bit like a notebook for me. I tell him all my life, but it is not necessarily to have a precise answer. It is rather to verbalize. »»

Like her, many weave a form of intimacy with the machine. This unprecedented report raises as much fascination as reserves: risk of isolation, sensitive data, diagnostic errors … mental health professionals observe this evolution with nuance. Vanessa Lalo, a psychologist specializing in digital uses, tempers: “On the one hand, we cannot say that Chatgpt is great and will replace psy. On the other, one cannot oppose these uses which appear massively. At the risk of losing patients if they are judged. »»

First step towards a consultation, emotional support …

If the machine does not replace the human presence in any way, certain benefits can nevertheless emerge, provided of punctual and enlightened use. For some, Chatgpt facilitates the expression of emotions and can even become a step preliminary to a real consultation. “There are still people who do not dare to push the door of a shrink. This can be a first step to realize that you still need to verbalize something, ”observes Vanessa Lalo. Often, AI additionally redirects shortly to knowledgeable. The psychologist and psychotherapist Jean-Paul Santoro abounds: “The fact of describing his feelings, even alone, on a paper or on a keyboard, can be beneficial. This allows the person to place their concerns in the field of language. »»

For the psychoanalyst Michaël Stora, those who speak to Chatgpt seek more simple and immediate answers than a real follow -up: “What people want is not necessarily understanding what happens to them, but finding a solution. And these are often common sense answers, a bit like what a grandparent would say: will get some fresh air, do a manual activity … “But the therapy is not there to provide a ready-made response. It aims to help the patient formulate the right questions, to start a process. And it is this path, sometimes long, which produces a real transformation.

Nevertheless, sparingly, AI can also offer punctual emotional support. “It can be an aid to have this pseudo-chorus, which humans will sometimes set up more slowly. Even if it is obviously a false empathy created from scratch by AI, ”notes Vanessa Lalo. Jean-Paul Santoro compares this consolation to that which a benevolent pal brings: “The simple fact of having a speech space can have a therapeutic effect, with anyone. “For his part, Olivier Duris, clinical psychologist, sees it as an interesting potential if AI is used as therapeutic mediation tool:” A bit like plasticine for children, or a support to approach delicate subjects in therapy. »»

The danger of the mirror effect

One of the main pitfalls-beyond the crucial question of data security-lies in what professionals call “the mirror effect”. An AI like Chatgpt, designed to validate the words of his interlocutor, can give a biased image of reality. “A friend is not just someone who validates everything: he is also the one who can say: there, you shit. The digital mirror is only validated, ”underlines Jean-Paul Santoro. A viewpoint that Vanessa Lalo shares: “These AI will not get angry and will not say things that derive from complex thought, this is where it becomes dangerous. »»

This validating logic can also harm a future therapeutic follow -up. “It is when the therapist says something that the patient does not want to hear that the work really starts,” explains Michaël Stora. AI maintains a form of illusory comfort. And those who get used to it are likely to fall from high in the face of a real shrink. »»

Read too “Already, our relationship is affected”: can AI help us solve our couple problems? As for isolation, it does not necessarily result from AI, but often reflects a solitude already present. “These uses meet a fundamental human need: that of being heard. It is not AI that makes people alone. It is our society that takes them away from each other, ”nuance Vanessa Lalo. The reality stays that for some profiles already on the sidelines, the danger is actual: the phantasm of an trade can strengthen isolation and delay administration.

A public coverage downside


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If it’s exhausting to ascertain a exact cartography of profiles tending to handle Chatgpt, the psychologists interviewed agree on one aspect: the success of those AI within the psychological subject reveals a flaw in public psychological well being insurance policies. “There is a glaring lack of places in CMP, and little access to affordable follow -up,” remembers Olivier Duris. So, sure, for me, it’s on the one hand the psychically fragile individuals who will flip to AI, and all of the extra individuals in nice social and financial precariousness, for lack of means. »»

A degree shared by Vanessa Lalo: “Mental well being stays the poor father or mother in France. And once you undergo, you may wander for a very long time with out anybody realizing it. Pass nights on the boards, to distill components of name for assist however troublesome to investigate … These makes use of should not trivial. The solutions stay open. But one factor is definite: behind the strains of code, it’s a very human want which is expressed. That of being heard, even by a machine.

https://www.lepoint.fr/societe/et-si-confier-ses-angoisses-a-chatgpt-n-etait-pas-si-absurde-ce-qu-en-pensent-les-psys-28-06-2025-2593179_23.php