Technology matters: AI-driven tools in children's mental healthcare: perspectives from young people and parents.

Zoë Firth, Christine Aicardi, Stephen Oram, Nicholas Cummins, Alice Wickersham, Helen L Fisher, Johnny Downs

Abstract read

In one paragraph

Article in Child and adolescent mental health, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it

0cells of the map it votes in

1citing papers in PubMed

–field-weighted citation impact

1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

Editorial: Technology is in our ecology.Child and adolescent mental health · 2026
Article

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Zoë FirthCAMHS Digital Lab, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0004-7547-577X

Christine AicardiDepartment of Global Health and Social Medicine, King's College London, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1112-7720

Stephen OramIndependent Applied Science Fiction Practitioner, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7915-5894

Nicholas CumminsCAMHS Digital Lab, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1178-917X

Alice WickershamCAMHS Digital Lab, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7402-7690

Helen L FisherSocial, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4174-2126

Johnny DownsCAMHS Digital Lab, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8061-295X

Funding

Economic and Social Research Council ES/S012567/1Economic and Social Research Council ES/W002531/1Medical Research Council MR/X002721/1National Institute for Health and Care Research CS-2018-18-ST2-014NIHR Maudsley Biomedical Research CentrePsychiatry Research Trust 39CUniversity College London Hospitals Biomedical Research Centre

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Artificial intelligence may be able to improve the efficiency, accuracy and predictiveness of mental health assessments, and public perspectives are crucial to ensuring these tools are implemented with fairness and accountability. We developed an artificial intelligence-driven tool to automatically analyse parents' speech data, which if successful could be implemented in children and young people's mental health assessments. To engage stakeholders with this project, we worked with a science fiction writer to produce two stories about possible futures of our tool, which we discussed in workshops with young people and parents. Here, we summarise key themes arising from this novel method of engaging the public in mental health research, and highlight considerations for clinicians and researchers creating novel technologies for children and young people's mental healthcare.

Indexed as

Artificial IntelligenceMental Health ServicesParent-Child RelationsParentsAdolescentChildHumansAdolescencecommunicationearly interventionparent–child relationshipsprediction

Identifiers

PMID41224241

DOI10.1111/camh.70045

PMCPMC13474275

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata

LicenceCC BY

Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.