A Tel-Hai University study revealed that 47% of surveyed Israeli adults experiencing severe psychological distress turn to generative AI chatbots for emotional support. Simultaneously, studies from the United States and England show widespread AI use among youth, with 90% of surveyed U.S. students trying chatbots. However, 63.2% of English adolescent users report unmet mental health needs, and experts warn these non-clinical tools lack crisis safeguards and may worsen loneliness over time.
Israeli adult AI mental health study
- ▪A Tel-Hai University study published in Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking found that 47% of surveyed Israeli adults with severe psychological distress used generative AI for mental health support.
- ▪Tel-Hai University researchers highlighted that general-purpose generative AI tools lack clinical mandates, established crisis-response safeguards, or formal authorization as mental health care providers.
- ▪A Tel-Hai University study found that 29.3% of 584 surveyed Israeli adult generative AI users sought emotional support, coping advice, or mental health assistance from platforms like ChatGPT.
Npj mental health Research study on English youth
- ▪In the npj Mental Health Research study of 24,132 English adolescents, 63.2% of AI chatbot mental health users reported wanting additional mental health assistance during the previous year.
- ▪Among surveyed English adolescents who used AI for mental health support in the npj Mental Health Research study, 55.9% rated the experience helpful, 31.4% rated it neutral, and 12.8% rated it unhelpful.
- ▪In the npj Mental Health Research study of English adolescents, Asian or Asian British students were the only demographic group significantly more likely to rate AI mental health support as helpful.
- ▪A survey of 24,132 secondary school and college students in England published in npj Mental Health Research found that 2.7% used general-purpose artificial intelligence for mental health support in the prior year.
OxWell survey on English adolescent AI use
- ▪Findings from the 2025 OxWell Student Survey indicated that 92.1% of English adolescents using AI for mental health support also accessed other support, while 16.5% received no offline mental health assistance.
- ▪Data from the 2025 OxWell Student Survey in England showed AI chatbot mental health use was elevated among adolescents reporting frequent food insecurity, depression, anxiety, previous self-harm, or loneliness.
- ▪In the 2025 OxWell Student Survey of adolescents in England, transgender and gender-diverse youth, as well as Asian or Asian British students, had higher odds of using AI for mental health support.
US youth AI usage surveys
- ▪Common Sense Media survey data revealed that nearly half of 9-to-12-year-olds and nearly three-quarters of 13-year-olds in the United States have used an AI chatbot or companion.
- ▪A JED Foundation survey of 5,500 U.S. students aged 9 to 17 found that 90% have used an AI chatbot, with nearly two-thirds using them both for schoolwork and as companions or when feeling stressed, lonely, or anxious.
Negative mental health associations
- ▪Research led by University of North Carolina psychologist Anne Maheux found that middle schoolers and young adults using AI chatbots for companionship developed increased loneliness and worsening mental health over time.
- ▪A JED Foundation survey found that young people using AI chatbots during emotional distress were more likely to report poor mental health outcomes and a history of suicidal thoughts or attempts.
Unexamined clinical impacts
- ▪The Tel-Hai University study did not evaluate whether generative AI interactions were helpful or harmful or whether users substituted AI for professional care.
- ▪The npj Mental Health Research study authors noted that consumer AI platforms operate without clinical evaluation regarding whether their advice is safe, appropriate, or effective for adolescent mental health.
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