Psychology is the study of human brain and it is the main power behind artificial intelligence, which attempts to model the intelligence of human into machine. AI is a science of intelligence that is intimately connected to Psychology and AI research drew inspiration from the study of human thinking. The power behind AI is the ability to learn from experience which is also applicable to human. The learning ability is interwoven with intelligence behavior research in AI. So, the central goal of research in AI presently should be to focus more on understanding the nature of learning in human in order to implement the learning capability better within the machine.

ANN models could use conceptual simulation models as the frame of reference to describe the complexity of psychological phenomenal. Also, ANN simulation could be used to describe the structure of the relationship between different situations, behavior and childhood experience in order to predict personality tendencies.

Dear Andrea.

You ask if see a potential in the application of Artificial Intelligence tools to psychological research and practice. Your question could lead to a long or a short answer. What follows is a short question.

Yes, I think that the application of Artificial Intelligence tools to psychological research and practice is welcome. Given that Artificial Intelligence aims at modeling humans' intelligence into machines, we can think of intelligent machines, not only of humans' intelligence. As teaching and learning involves intelligence, we can see how intelligent machines behave in teaching/learning situations and profit from these situations such that we can have a more effective leaching and learning. Note that intelligent machines can dispense teachers and students with boring tasks, such as to digitalize chapters and books, make a legitimate copy of them, download papers, display powerpoints, and the like. In a nutshell Artificial Intelligence can dispense teachers, students and the remaining staff from, say, boring tasks. However powerful Artificial Intelligence may be when it is introduced into schools whatever, there is also a dark side when AI, say, enters schools. First, AI may give rise to unemployment, which is bad for several people. More importantly, intelligence machines other than humans' intelligence, have, say a grammar and programed rules, but are completely blind in terms of semantics and meaning. This is the reason why such intelligent machines cannot experience emotions of any type. This means that when it goes to schools, Artificial Intelligence cannot dispense with, say, the human presence in schools. If this were not the case, schools would become, say, a human desert, that is, dehumanized schools. Thus, teachers and students can profit a lot when Artificial Intelligence goes to school. But both teachers and students should be aware that, for example, Artificial Intelligence is only cognitive intelligence and has nothing to do with, for example, emotional intelligence, dreams, and the like. Having been a university professor for several decades, I feel disappointed and desolated when I think of classrooms  full with intelligent machines, but without any teacher and any student. Note also that intelligent machines are a result of human intelligence.  So, Artificial Intelligence means power to schools, their teachers, and professors. Even so, they should be seen as mechanical tools that help students and teachers to learn and teach, respectively, in a more efficient way, not as mechanical tools that dispense with the human presence.

Best regards,

It’s interesting how people from different fields see history from different vantage points.  I would characterize psychology and artificial intelligence as having a long-standing history where psychology is the impetus behind some of the AI we see today.  For example, Herb Simon developed the first versions of Deep Blue in the 50’s and 60’s to parallel the thought processes being discovered in Cognitive Psychology, and specifically to model expert chess players (in his studies of actual chess experts).  Many other artificial intelligence programs were created to study Cognitive and Developmental Psychology (e.g., John Anderson’s ACT-R).  Some of the earliest efforts at the modern Big Data methods of AI began as Neuro-Psychological research to model the brain, complete with nodes and weightings to parallel synaptic connections (e.g., McClelland’s PDP).  I do imagine that we’ll continue to see the computer science of AI become the impetus to push human thought further and further, such as expert systems helping doctors diagnose and tutoring software designed to dynamically adjust to an individual student’s learning needs.  We’re also seeing Big Data methods being increasingly used as a way to broaden research methodology in psychology, such as the scraping of social media to correlate patterns with personality traits or the way Facebook experimentally manipulated feeds to alter people’s emotional states (essentially replicating prior psychological research on emotion contagion).  Interesting question!  ~ Kevin

Hi Kevin - yes, I agree there are so many directions that AI-psychology collaboration is taking. I am very much interested to systematize the field, it looks like this is going to be an hot topic in the next few years

Yes!

Dear Orlando,

I completely agree with your perspective on the potential applications of AI in schools. I do think the time has come for psychologists to better understand the current direction of AI and its future evolutions. Personally, I think that the progresses of AI and robotics are so dramatic that psychologists are not fully realizing the potential impacts that this technology may have on individuals and society. It is like most of our colleagues still see AI as something very far to come. However, AI is here - and it is here to stay. Thus, I think that there is a clear need for soliciting an interdisciplinary discussion on AI, aimed at identifying the opportunities and the risks of the introduction of synthetic intelligence applications in mental health research and practice. 

Dear Andrea.

It certainly the case that we both agree that because on its implications for schools and  society, AI should be subject to an interdisciplinary discussion. It is easy to see the benefits that Artificial Intelligence brings to schools and society in general. In reminds me of a Piagetian affirmation. As it were, such benefits and gains are there to be observed. For one to see its dark side, we have to be more inferential, which reminds me of a Piagetian negation. This means that Artificial Intelligence, just because it is Artificial and mechanic has only grammar and has nothing to do with meaning and semantics. So, Artificial Intelligence does not go to solve all problems of the world.

Best regards, Orlando

AI is currently used within psychological research and helping to discover trends in very large sets such as Facebook and Twitter. There are systems which can make a prediction regarding a person mental health to a nations attitude towards political leaders. Remember, there is a specific psychological field called 'computational psychology' which converts recognised theories of psychology in to computer algorithms in a bid to accurately represent behaviour using a computer. 

AI is steadily improving and there is demonstrated evidence of how this can be used within schools such as chat bots which helps the learner to develop deeper understanding of the subject, I have written one of these myself. However, there are major limitation with this approach most especially the level of engagement. as entertaining as these systems are learners still demand human-to-human interaction. However, AI 'chat bots' can act as a early warning system for people who live alone or who are at risk through day human-computer interaction the AI can make assessments and alert the relevant support package.

This may be of interest to you 

Artificial Intelligence in Behavioral and Mental Health Care, Edition: 1st, Publisher: Elsevier Academic Press, Editors: David D. Luxton