AI (artificial intelligence) is now being discussed more since Chatgpt, a generative AI tool, has become available for everyone.
AI is a topic that is growing in popularity worldwide for many reasons.
Some people are excited about it and feel that it’s the next best thing since Google, as it will solve their problems and do all the hard work for them. They see many advantages of AI.
Other people are scared of it, worried that it will take their jobs or be the start of computers taking over the world. They see the risks and the disadvantages of AI.
In addition, AI raises ethical considerations about using machines and human development. What I think makes it worse is that no one really knows where it will go and the impact it will have on everyone’s lives.
I don’t claim to be an expert, but I think it’s also about control and risk.
AI anxiety is a recognised condition that I believe can be helped with hypnotherapy, as hypnotherapy is a proven method of assisting people to reduce anxiety and build confidence and self-esteem.
What is AI Anxiety?
Anxiety is a threat that triggers irrational emotions and often presents as a fear.
Artificial Intelligence Anxiety, or AI Anxiety, refers to the general apprehension or unease individuals
experience in response to the rapid development and integration of AI technologies into various aspects of
society. (Kim et al. 2023).
In my search to understand AI anxiety more, I found an interesting study.
A paper by Li and Huang (2020) has identified the dimensions of AI anxiety.
Their study concluded that AI anxiety, based on the Integrated fear acquisition theory, has eight dimensions. They are:
- Privacy violation anxiety
- Bias behaviour anxiety
- Job replacement anxiety
- Learning anxiety
- Existential risk anxiety
- Ethics violation anxiety
- Artificial consciousness anxiety
- Lack of transparency anxiety
They further state that there are four ways to develop AI anxiety. They are:
- Conditioning. This relates to the use of AI.
- Vicarious Exposure. This is about watching others lose their jobs or get into problems with AI.
- Transmission of Information and Instruction. This is the worry about the ethics surrounding AI.
- Innate or Non-associative Pathway. This means there is a lack of transparency around AI and the fear of the unknown.
Who gets AI anxiety?
At a macro level, it can affect countries, corporations, and learning environments such as universities and businesses.
It is well known that university students can suffer from anxiety because they get exam anxiety. However, I have heard tutors say that students are also concerned about AI anxiety, as students want to use AI but are worried about plagiarism, while tutors are concerned about ‘cheating’ by the overuse and inappropriate use of AI.
AI anxiety is prevalent across the world.
An IPOS study found that Australians were the most concerned about AI.
At a micro or individual level, anyone can get AI anxiety. However, people who worry about privacy and data protection online may worry more.
Some people might get AI anxiety because they don’t understand it.
Others might get AI anxiety because of ethical dilemmas.
Some people may also have other anxiety issues. They might not be very good at socialising or have other family members who have anxiety issues.
It could also be another stressor.
Li and Huang suggest that it is similar to computer anxiety, but it’s not the same.
What are the symptoms of AI anxiety?
AI anxiety has the same problems with negative thoughts, emotional issues such as fear, worry, stress, and changes in behaviour.
This is what some people do with AI that increases their anxiety.
First, they ask for a general AI tool to provide information if they have a problem.
They get an answer, but it’s not the answer they want, so they ask it more questions, and the AI answers are taking the person off to other thoughts. Because the prompts the person gives might not be simple or specific enough, they are getting bombarded with information that is not the correct information for them.
Furthermore, sometimes AI makes mistakes and hallucinates, giving people false information and making up sources of information.
So, the time spent on asking AI for information and the frustration of the AI tool not getting the exact answers that the person wants results in stress and anxiety thoughts. They may feel like giving up, which affects their confidence and self-esteem. They don’t feel good enough and believe they can’t do the task.
How is AI anxiety managed?
The usual treatments for anxiety are:
- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
- Counselling
- EMDR
- Medication
- Relaxation
- Alternative and complementary therapies
Hypnotherapy is a complementary therapy that many people fail to realise can help anxiety disorders.
How can hypnotherapy help?
There is good evidence of changes in fMRI scans and research that supports hypnosis for assisting a variety of anxiety problems.
Hypnotherapy helps through relaxation and reframing negative thought patterns.
It can also help with some of the symptoms related to anxiety, such as low confidence and self-esteem and difficulty sleeping.
Where can I get help for AI anxiety?
Anyone with anxiety that continues for weeks and gets worse should have a health check by their doctor, as some forms of anxiety are a mask for some health-related problems.
However, most people are experiencing psychological issues that can be helped with counselling and hypnotherapy.
At Awaken the Change, I offer help with hypnotherapy and CBT, as the addition of CBT has been shown to increase success with several conditions.
Book a free consultation and find out more at www.awakenthechange.com/online-bookings/
My office is in Bournemouth, but I do most work online.
