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. 2023 Dec 5:5:1251016.
doi: 10.3389/fdgth.2023.1251016. eCollection 2023.

Qualitative analysis of mental health conversational agents messages about autism spectrum disorder: a call for action

S Aghakhani  1 , N Carre  1 , K Mostovoy  1 , R Shafer  1 , K Baeza-Hernandez  1 , G Entenberg  2 , A Testerman  1 , E L Bunge  1
Affiliations

Qualitative analysis of mental health conversational agents messages about autism spectrum disorder: a call for action

S Aghakhani et al. Front Digit Health. .

Abstract

Background: Conversational agents (CA's) have shown promise in increasing accessibility to mental health resources. This study aimed to identify common themes of messages sent to a mental health CA (Wysa) related to ASD by general users and users that identify as having ASD.

Methods: This study utilized retrospective data. Two thematic analyses were conducted, one focusing on user messages including the keywords (e.g., ASD, autism, Asperger), and the second one with messages from users who self-identified as having ASD.

Results: For the sample of general users, the most frequent themes were "others having ASD," "ASD diagnosis," and "seeking help." For the users that self-identified as having ASD (n = 277), the most frequent themes were "ASD diagnosis or symptoms," "negative reaction from others," and "positive comments." There were 3,725 emotion words mentioned by users who self-identified as having ASD. The majority had negative valence (80.3%), and few were positive (14.8%) or ambivalent (4.9%).

Conclusion: Users shared their experiences and emotions surrounding ASD with a mental health CA. Users asked about the ASD diagnosis, sought help, and reported negative reactions from others. CA's have the potential to become a source of support for those interested in ASD and/or identify as having ASD.

Keywords: autism spectrum disorder; chatbots; digital interventions; digital mental health; technology.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Screening process of messages mentioning words related to autism spectrum disorder.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Frequency of emotion words by valance, themes, and single words.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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