Counselling and Psychotherapy Research:
Special Section on
Artificial Intelligence and Therapy

By Professor Terry Hanley,
University of Manchester

Proposal Submission Deadline:
Friday, September 29, 2023


Call for Papers!

Whilst the idea of artificial intelligence (AI) is nothing new, the practical application of such technologies has expanded greatly in recent years. These developments have led to researchers and businesses to consider how these new ideas might apply in human services such as counselling and psychotherapy.

This Special CPR journal section aims to bring together a series of papers that highlight some of the range of ways that AI, machine learning and deep learning are being utilised in the counselling professions. We welcome submissions that address this broad topic and reflect ways that these new technologies are being applied to support therapy services, offer therapeutic interventions or contribute to therapist training. In addition to completed empirical studies (no more than 7,500 word submissions including references), we will welcome perspectives pieces that critically discuss an area of research with a view to articulating a direction for future research (usually in the region of 1,500 words).

Background

Douglas Adams, the British science fiction author, noted that technology is “stuff that doesn’t work yet” (Adams, 1999). We no longer think of items such as chairs as technology as they act as we expect them to, without failing. About 20 years ago, this was a quote that was applied to some of the challenges around the development of web-based therapies. People were sceptical about whether these new areas of work might be viewed as helpful and a bona fide means of offering effective support. Whilst these technologies were slowly evolving, the onset of covid-19 acted as a catalyst for their growth (Hanley, 2021) and they have now become widely accepted ways of offering mental health and wellbeing support. More recently, with the increasing acceptance of web-based therapies, this quote might therefore be better applied to developments in the way that AI is being used to contribute to the provision of the counselling professions.

A recent review of therapists’ perspectives of the use of AI in therapy highlights that whilst practitioners see opportunities in these technologies, there is also much concern and consternation (Prescott & Hanley, 2023). Despite these concerns, this area continues to develop and shows no sign of abating, with a recent review concluding that the “proof-of-concept studies are encouraging, however, do not necessarily translate to improved clinical practice (yet)” (Doorn et al., 2021, p. 92). With this growth and development in mind, this special section intends to collate a series of papers highlighting the areas that researchers are currently investigating and identify new horizons that such technologies might take the counselling professions.

What, When and How

This special issue invites contributions around the theme of ‘Artificial Intelligence and Therapy’. As noted above, we welcome contributions of empirical research studies alongside theoretically minded perspectives pieces. These latter pieces must make critical use of research and identify future directions for the profession. In all cases we remind authors of the journal’s focus upon bridging practice and research.

Please send your proposal summary in the form of an abstract (of max 300 words) to [email protected]

Proposal deadline: Friday the 29th of September 2023

Full submission deadline: Friday the 26th of January 2024

References

Adams, D. (1999). How to Stop Worrying and Learn to Love the Internet. The Sunday Times. https://douglasadams.com/dna/19990901-00-a.html

Doorn, K. A., Kamsteeg, C., Bate, J., & Aafjes, M. (2021). A scoping review of machine learning in psychotherapy research. Psychotherapy Research, 31(1), 92–116. https://doi.org/10/gg92dc

Hanley, T. (2021). Researching online counselling and psychotherapy: The past, the present and the future. Counselling and Psychotherapy Research, 21(3), 493–497. https://doi.org/10.1002/capr.12385

Prescott, J., & Hanley, T. (2023). Therapists’ attitudes towards the use of AI in therapeutic practice: Considering the therapeutic alliance. Mental Health and Social Inclusion, 27(2), 177–185. https://doi.org/10.1108/MHSI-02-2023-0020