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This paper is in the following e-collection/theme issue:

Digital Health Reviews (3537) Digital Mental Health Interventions, e-Mental Health and Cyberpsychology (3104) Anxiety and Stress Disorders (1586) Chatbots and Conversational Agents (1140) Clinical Mental Health Informatics (130)

Published on in Vol 27 (2025)

Preprints (earlier versions) of this paper are available at https://preprints.jmir.org/preprint/78238, first published .
Man looking at smartphone with AI chatbot conversation bubbles

Generative AI Mental Health Chatbots as Therapeutic Tools: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Their Role in Reducing Mental Health Issues

Generative AI Mental Health Chatbots as Therapeutic Tools: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Their Role in Reducing Mental Health Issues

Authors of this article:

Qiyang Zhang1 Author Orcid Image ;   Renwen Zhang2 Author Orcid Image ;   Yiying Xiong3 Author Orcid Image ;   Yuan Sui3 Author Orcid Image ;   Chang Tong3 Author Orcid Image ;   Fu-Hung Lin3 Author Orcid Image
Article Authors Cited by (26) Tweetations (4) Metrics

Journals

  1. Zhang Q, Zhang R, Xiong Y, Sui Y, Tong C, Lin F. Generative AI Mental Health Chatbots as Therapeutic Tools: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Their Role in Reducing Mental Health Issues. Journal of Medical Internet Research 2025;27:e78238 View
  2. Chung V, Bernier P, Hudon A. Mass Media Narratives of Psychiatric Adverse Events Associated With Generative AI Chatbots: Rapid Scoping Review. JMIR Mental Health 2026;13:e93040 View
  3. Chen S, Feucht M, Bhatt A, Farlow J. Artificial Intelligence in Head and Neck Surgical Oncology: A State-of-the-Art Review. Journal of Clinical Medicine 2026;15(7):2767 View
  4. Kéri S. Szimulált tudat, álempátia és kötődésillúzió: mit kezdhet a pszichiátria a mesterséges intelligenciával?. Orvosi Hetilap 2026;167(14):539 View
  5. Shoshani A, Gurfinkel B, Kor A, Ben-Haim Y, Kanarek O, Segev R, Shafir O, Arbel R. Efficacy of a Conversational AI Agent for Psychiatric Symptoms and Digital Therapeutic Alliance. JAMA Network Open 2026;9(4):e266713 View
  6. Schmidt R, Gonzalez S, St. George S, DiCamillo C, Horigian V. Shedding light on mental health problems and potential solutions for young women: results from an anonymous asynchronous online focus group. Frontiers in Psychiatry 2026;17 View
  7. Coulombe É, Hudon A, Paquin V. The Therapeutic Potential of Chatbots for Men Who Are Involuntarily Single: A Commentary on Lafortune et al. (2026). Archives of Sexual Behavior 2026 View
  8. Lialiou P, Katsiroumpa A, Gallos P, Konstantakopoulou O, Moisoglou I, Galani O, Tsiachri M, Galanis P. Exploring Nurses’ Perspectives on the Use of Artificial Intelligence Chatbots for Mental Health Support: A Cross-Sectional Study in Greece. Nursing Reports 2026;16(4):133 View
  9. Basantes Insuasti J, Corrales Vargas D, Villa Yánez V. Inteligencia Artificial Generativa como apoyo para la personalización de intervenciones terapéuticas para la depresión: una revisión exploratoria. Esprint Investigación 2026;5(1):754 View
  10. Yang M, Oka M, Mori H. Development and Evaluation of a Chatbot-Based System for Early Detection of Depression Indicators. Computers 2026;15(5):269 View
  11. Wei H, Atwal P, Humphrey L, Yu Y. Evaluating the safety of AI responses in suicide-related interactions: A clinically informed framework and simulation study. Psychiatry Research Communications 2026;6(2):100263 View
  12. Jaewon L. From Adolescence to Older Adulthood: Lifespan Pathways Linking AI Companion Chatbots to Mental Health. Lifespan Development and Mental Health 2026;2(1):10005 View
  13. Xiong Y, Zhai Y, Fulmer R. Regulating Artificial Intelligence in Mental Health: A Content Analysis of Global Professional Ethical and Policy Guidelines. Journal of Counseling & Development 2026;104(3):339 View
  14. Hoffman L, Hoffman L. Artificial Intelligence and Being Human: Critical Thinking, Creativity, and Empathy. The Journal of Humanistic Counseling 2026 View
  15. Novebri N, Kurniady D, Komariah A, Sianturi R, Kadarsah D, Tamam B, Kusumadewi R, Darmawan D, Akil A, Hadiyanto H. AI-Integrated Counseling Administration Quality and Organizational Support as Drivers of Early Risk Detection in Indonesian Schools. F1000Research 2026;15:585 View
  16. Santos B, Roza T, Passos I. The engagement-validation loop: Sycophancy, anthropomorphic projection, and clinical risk in informal AI-based mental health support. Journal of Affective Disorders 2026;412:122123 View
  17. Suffoletto B, Preiksaitis C, Kim D, Rose C, Pitre V, Pillai N, Mandal M. AI counseling agent for motivational interviewing: Conversational processes associated with change talk in emergency department patients. Journal of Substance Use and Addiction Treatment 2026;190:210053 View
  18. García-Viola A, Márquez-Hernández V, Garrido-Molina J, Alcayde-García A, Rodríguez-García M. Design, Development, and Validation of a Chatbot to Support Health Care Professionals Experiencing Workplace Aggression: Protocol for a Mixed Methods Study. JMIR Research Protocols 2026;15:e92511 View
  19. Zhong L, Zhou C, Miao J, Dong J, Luo L, Liu C, Li Y. Transforming surgical ward rounds: constructivist pedagogy, structured models, and intelligent technologies. Frontiers in Medicine 2026;13 View
  20. Xue K, Tuzovic S, Gottlieb U. Reimagining Therapy: Consumer Perceptions of Generative AI in Mental Health. Journal of Consumer Affairs 2026;60(3) View
  21. Fong T, Chan C, Kwok A, Chan R, Tang R, Wen M, Yip P. Relationship Between Generative AI Use and Life Satisfaction and the Mediating Role of AI Literacy Among Hong Kong Adults: Cross-Sectional Study. Journal of Medical Internet Research 2026;28:e88362 View
  22. El Hajj S, Nsouli A, Wehbe M, Saad G, Maalouf F. From promise to practice: artificial intelligence in mental health care in the MENA region. Frontiers in Psychiatry 2026;17 View

Books/Policy Documents

  1. . Selbstentwicklung und Coaching mit KI: Dein Prompt-Kompass für Klarheit und Wandel. View

Conference Proceedings

  1. Wang C, Zhang J, Zhou C. Proceedings of the Extended Abstracts of the 2026 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. Who Is More Willing to Form a Romantic Intimate Relationship with GAI? View
  2. N M, A M, K M. 2026 6th International Conference on Expert Clouds and Applications (ICOECA). Senti Bot: An AI-Driven Emotional Support and Crisis Intervention System using Multimodal Interaction View
  3. N S, K M, John Baskar S, S D. 2026 6th International Conference on Pervasive Computing and Social Networking (ICPCSN). EMO-GUIDE: Emotion-Driven Interactive Chatbot for Mental Well-Being using FSM-based Dialogue Control View