{"id":38004,"date":"2025-06-23T16:16:56","date_gmt":"2025-06-23T16:16:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jedfoundation.org\/?p=38004"},"modified":"2025-08-18T11:51:35","modified_gmt":"2025-08-18T15:51:35","slug":"artificial-intelligence-youth-mental-health-pov","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jedfoundation.org\/artificial-intelligence-youth-mental-health-pov\/","title":{"rendered":"Tech Companies and Policymakers Must Safeguard Youth Mental Health in AI Technologies"},"content":{"rendered":"

Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly reshaping how teens and young adults learn, connect, express themselves, manage stress, launch careers, and seek support. From personalized learning tools and algorithm-driven content recommendations to AI companions and mental health chatbots, AI is a present and accelerating force in their lives.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But AI systems are not neutral. They are introducing new, large-scale risks to youth mental health \u2014 often without transparency, safeguards, or accountability. AI is <\/span>already affecting<\/span><\/a> youth development and how young people experience identity, relationships, community, stress, and help-seeking.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

At The Jed Foundation (JED), we work to promote emotional well-being and reduce suicide risk for teens and young adults. We believe AI must be developed and deployed in ways that enhance youth mental health, not undermine it. Young people must not be left to navigate these systems without the appropriate tools, support, and developmental readiness. We are committed to ensuring that AI does not deepen isolation, distort reality, or cause harm, but instead serves as a tool to strengthen connection, care, and resilience.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Our nation has long recognized that children require special protections as they grow and mature. Over the past century, we have enacted robust safeguards against child labor, tobacco and alcohol marketing and sales, advertising and media, and how companies collect and use young people\u2019s data. These protections reflect a simple truth: Children are not miniature adults.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Adolescence is a critical period of brain development \u2014 second only to infancy \u2014 shaping how young people regulate emotions, form identity, and assess risk. <\/span>Emerging research<\/span><\/a> from the American Psychological Association (APA) underscores that this stage of life brings heightened sensitivity to social feedback and emotionally engaging environments, which can be exploited by AI systems designed to maximize attention or simulate care.<\/span><\/p>\n

Age alone is not a reliable marker of readiness for these tools. Young people deserve thoughtful, proactive, and protective regulatory safeguards, especially when powerful technologies and profit-driven systems are involved and shaping their development.<\/span><\/p>\n

We therefore call on lawmakers, regulators, and technology companies to adopt comprehensive, enforceable safeguards that govern the deployment and commercialization of AI technologies to minors, particularly those designed to capture, maintain, or monetize their attention or emotional states.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Risks of AI<\/span><\/h2>\n

The risks of AI are not speculative. Researchers at the <\/span>Stanford School of Medicine’s Brainstorm Lab for Mental Health Innovation and Common Sense Media<\/span><\/a> found that social AI companions \u2014 which are intended to build human-like relationships (rather than just convey information or complete tasks) \u2014 routinely claimed to be real, have feelings, and engage in human behaviors, despite legal disclaimers otherwise.<\/span>\u00a0In tests, researchers noted dangerous and misleading advice, including promoting cyberbullying and offering positive messaging about self-harm. And they found AI companions exacerbated mental health conditions in already vulnerable teens and created compulsive attachments and relationships.<\/span><\/p>\n

These are just some of the very real risks our youth are already facing. Findings from the APA further emphasize the developmental risks of AI-mediated interactions, particularly those that mimic peer or therapeutic relationships without real care or accountability. The research community should continue to study the potential harms to inform policy and practice. Critical areas of concern include:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n