Artificial Intelligence Ethics in Psychological Support Services: Scoping Review with Systematic Literature Search

A systematic literature search and scoping review of published studies over the past decade was performed to put forward a framework of ethical norms for the use of AI in dialog-based interpersonal support, such as psychotherapy, counseling, and coaching. The review of 62 articles yielded 20 ethical principles categorized into five main areas—individual rights, technical responsibility, AI–human interaction, social responsibility, and professional ethics. Moreover, this proposed roles for clients and professionals as users, providers, and developers, as well as related organizations, including professional associations and government entities. The comprehensive findings of this study can serve as a foundation for the development of codes of ethics codes and guidelines for the use of AI in psychological support services, as well as for the promotion of future research in this area.