{"podcast":{"title":"Beyond the Couch: AI in Psychology","slug":"beyond-the-couch-ai-in-psychology-7371090","podcast_index_feed_id":7371090,"rss_url":"https://feeds.captivate.fm/beyond-the-couch-ai-in-psychology/","website_url":"https://beyond-the-couch-ai-in-psychology.captivate.fm","image_url":"https://artwork.captivate.fm/e6ac8414-5251-4282-99ad-bb54fabe7da9/k8gsEM44v_wy33JvuntBs7Gz.jpg","author":"Ernest Wayde","episode_count":28,"summary":"Beyond the Couch: AI in Psychology bridges the gap between psychology and artificial intelligence, offering psychologists across all specialties clear, actionable insights into how AI is transforming the field. Whether you're a clinician, researcher, educator, organizational psychologist, or working in any psychological specialty, this podcast delivers expert perspectives on ethical integration, practical applications, and future developments to help you confidently navigate the digital transformation of our profession. Presented by ABPP and Wayde AI, with sponsorship from the National Register of Health Service Psychologist, this collaboration brings together psychological expertise and technological innovation to explore how AI can enhance psychological work while maintaining professional standards and human connection. Subscribe now to join a growing community of forward-thinking psychologists who are shaping the future of our profession.","last_synced_at":"2026-09-22T10:20:41.068540+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/beyond-the-couch-ai-in-psychology-7371090"},"episode":{"title":"Building AI for Mental Health: A Computer Scientist’s Perspective with Zainab Iftikhar","slug":"building-ai-for-mental-health-a-computer-scientist-s-perspective-with-zainab-iftikhar","published_at":"2026-08-11T09:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/beyond-the-couch-ai-in-psychology-7371090/building-ai-for-mental-health-a-computer-scientist-s-perspective-with-zainab-iftikhar","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/beyond-the-couch-ai-in-psychology-7371090","url":"https://beyond-the-couch-ai-in-psychology.captivate.fm","audio_url":"https://episodes.captivate.fm/episode/bd060c8f-62b8-465e-86dc-05dbc06de931.mp3","summary":"In this episode, Dr. Ernest Wayde sits down with Zainab Iftikhar, a PhD candidate in Computer Science at Brown University whose research focuses on Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and AI for mental health. As the first computer scientist featured on the podcast, Zainab offers a unique perspective on how mental health AI systems are designed, evaluated, and used in the real world. The conversation explores why people turn to AI for emotional support, the benefits and risks of mental health chatbots, and what happens when users begin to rely on these systems in place of human connection. Zainab shares insights from her research on emotional dependency, therapeutic boundaries, and the challenges of building AI that supports well-being without causing harm. The episode also examines the critical role of clinicians, researchers, and developers in shaping the future of mental health technology. Together, they discuss how AI can serve as a valuable support tool while preserving human relationships and clinical expertise that remain at the heart of effective care. Takeaways: Human connection remains essential in therapy. AI is designed to agree with users. Overreliance on AI can create dependency. Long-term AI use deserves closer evaluation. Psychologists should help shape mental health AI. Safe AI requires clinician-developer collaboration. Connect with Zainab Iftikhar Website: https://zainabiftikhar.com/ Connect With Us https://www.waydeai.com/ https://www.facebook.com/waydeaillc https://www.linkedin.com/company/wayde-ai/ info@waydeai.com Subscribe https://the-waydeai-brief.beehiiv.com/ Chapters: 00:00 - Intro 02:56 - Journey Into AI & Mental Health Research 04:30 - Evaluating AI in Mental Health Contexts 08:05 - How People Actually Use AI for Mental Health 11:30 - Desi…","meta_description":"In this episode, Dr. Ernest Wayde sits down with Zainab Iftikhar, a PhD candidate in Computer Science at Brown University whose research focuses on Human-…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":1829,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/beyond-the-couch-ai-in-psychology-7371090/episodes/building-ai-for-mental-health-a-computer-scientist-s-perspective-with-zainab-iftikhar/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/beyond-the-couch-ai-in-psychology-7371090/building-ai-for-mental-health-a-computer-scientist-s-perspective-with-zainab-iftikhar.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}