{"slug": "do-americans-think-chatbots-help-or-hurt-people-using-them-for-loneliness-or", "title": "Do Americans think chatbots help or hurt people using them for loneliness, depression or stress?", "summary": "A Pew Research Center survey of 3,488 U.S. adults conducted June 22-28, 2026, finds that Americans are more likely to say chatbots do more to hurt than help people who use them for loneliness (39% hurt vs. 19% help), depression (36% vs. 17%), and stress (29% vs. 22%). Younger adults are especially pessimistic, with 49% of those under 30 saying chatbots hurt people using them for loneliness, while older adults are more likely to be unsure.", "body_md": "#### Key takeaways:\n\n- Americans are more likely to say chatbots do more to hurt than help people who use them for support with loneliness, depression or stress.\n- Younger adults are largely pessimistic that chatbots can help people who use them for social and mental health support.\n- But sizable shares of Americans aren’t sure. Older adults are especially likely to be unsure of chatbots’ impact on people using them for these reasons.\n- Asian adults stand out as being more positive about using chatbot for social and mental health support.\n\nAt a time of [public debate](https://www.npr.org/2026/04/10/nx-s1-5780796/artificial-intelligence-ai-mental-health-chatgpt-jama-psychiatry) and [high-profile cases](https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/26/technology/chatgpt-openai-suicide.html) of chatbot use for social and mental health, a new Pew Research Center survey finds that, on balance, **Americans say chatbots do more to hurt than help people who use them for loneliness, depression or stress.**\n\n“From Diagnoses to Treatments, Why Americans Use AI Chatbots for Health”\n\n| Hurt | Help | Neither help nor hurt | Not sure | |\n|---|---|---|---|---|\n| Loneliness | 39 | 19 | 14 | 27 |\n| Depression | 36 | 17 | 14 | 33 |\n| Stress | 29 | 22 | 18 | 31 |\n\n“From Diagnoses to Treatments, Why Americans Use AI Chatbots for Health”\n\n**Using chatbots for****loneliness:** 39% say they do more to hurt people, while 19% say they do more to help.**Using chatbots for****depression:** 36% say they do more to hurt, while 17% say they do more to help.**Using chatbots for****stress:** There’s less of a difference in opinion for using chatbots for stress, but still, 29% say they do more to hurt, while 22% say they do more to help.\n\n**But** **sizable shares of Americans are unsure of AI’s impact on people who use them for social and mental health support.** About three-in-ten say they’re not sure about AI’s impact on loneliness, depression or stress. And between 14% and 18% don’t lean one way or the other, saying AI neither helps nor hurts people who use them for support with these struggles.\n\nThis analysis is based on a broader Pew Research Center survey exploring Americans’ views on and experiences with AI in healthcare, conducted June 22-28, 2026, among 3,488 U.S. adults. For more, read: [From Diagnoses to Treatments, Why Americans Use AI Chatbots for Health](https://www.pewresearch.org/science/2026/08/25/from-diagnoses-to-treatments-why-americans-use-ai-chatbots-for-health/)\n\n*Related:**Americans and AI 2026: Chatbots, Smart Devices and Views on Impact*\n\n*Related: **Where Do Americans Get Health Information, and What Do They Trust?*\n\n### Differences by age: About half of adults under 30 say chatbots hurt people who use these tools as support for loneliness\n\nYounger adults are more likely than older adults to say they [use chatbots for emotional support](https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2026/06/17/how-opinions-and-use-of-ai-differ-by-age/). Yet, younger Americans are largely pessimistic that chatbots can help people who use them for social and mental health support. **About half of adults under 30 (49%) say chatbots do more to hurt people who use them for loneliness, and 41% say the same for depression.** Far fewer say chatbots do more to help people with loneliness and depression (23% each).\n\n“From Diagnoses to Treatments, Why Americans Use AI Chatbots for Health”\n\n| Age group | Mental Health | Hurt | Help | Not sure |\n|---|---|---|---|---|\n| Ages 18-29 | Loneliness | 49 | 23 | 15 |\n| 30-49 | Loneliness | 40 | 23 | 25 |\n| 50-64 | Loneliness | 36 | 19 | 29 |\n| 65+ | Loneliness | 32 | 11 | 40 |\n| Ages 18-29 | Depression | 41 | 23 | 20 |\n| 30-49 | Depression | 36 | 20 | 30 |\n| 50-64 | Depression | 34 | 15 | 35 |\n| 65+ | Depression | 32 | 8 | 46 |\n| Ages 18-29 | Stress | 32 | 30 | 21 |\n| 30-49 | Stress | 28 | 25 | 29 |\n| 50-64 | Stress | 29 | 20 | 32 |\n| 65+ | Stress | 27 | 13 | 44 |\n\n“From Diagnoses to Treatments, Why Americans Use AI Chatbots for Health”\n\nOf those who take a side, by a wide margin, adults across age groups say chatbots do more to hurt than help people who use them to get support with loneliness or depression.\n\nUsing chatbots for stress is one area where younger Americans aren’t as likely to say they will hurt. Adults under 50 are about equally likely to say chatbots help as say they hurt.\n\nAcross the board, **older adults are far more likely to be uncertain.** The largest shares of adults 65 and older – four-in-ten or more – say they are not sure if AI chatbots do more to help or hurt people who use then for loneliness, depression or stress.\n\n### Differences by race and ethnicity: Asian adults are more positive toward chatbot use for social and mental health support\n\nAsian adults are the only racial or ethnic group that skews more positive than negative for any of the items we asked about. (Estimates for Asian adults are representative of English speakers only.)\n\nNote: Respondents who said “Neither help nor hurt” (shares ranging from 13% to 21%) or did not answer are not shown. White, Black and Asian adults include those who report being only one race and are not Hispanic. Hispanic adults are of any race.\n\n“From Diagnoses to Treatments, Why Americans Use AI Chatbots for Health”\n\n| Demographic | Mental Health | Hurt | Help | Not sure |\n|---|---|---|---|---|\n| White | Loneliness | 43 | 16 | 28 |\n| Hispanic | Loneliness | 35 | 23 | 26 |\n| Black | Loneliness | 30 | 21 | 34 |\n| Asian* | Loneliness | 25 | 37 | 22 |\n| White | Depression | 39 | 14 | 34 |\n| Hispanic | Depression | 31 | 22 | 32 |\n| Black | Depression | 25 | 16 | 40 |\n| Asian* | Depression | 26 | 30 | 27 |\n| White | Stress | 31 | 19 | 33 |\n| Hispanic | Stress | 28 | 26 | 28 |\n| Black | Stress | 21 | 23 | 36 |\n| Asian* | Stress | 21 | 34 | 25 |\n\nNote: Respondents who said “Neither help nor hurt” (shares ranging from 13% to 21%) or did not answer are not shown. White, Black and Asian adults include those who report being only one race and are not Hispanic. Hispanic adults are of any race.\n\n“From Diagnoses to Treatments, Why Americans Use AI Chatbots for Health”\n\nWhen it comes to people using AI chatbots for loneliness, Asian adults are more likely to say chatbots do more to help than hurt (37% vs. 25%).\n\nThe same for stress: 34% of Asian adults say chatbots do more to help, compared with 21% who say they do more to hurt.\n\nViews of chatbot use for depression among Asian adults are more mixed: Similar shares say chatbots do more to help versus hurt (30% vs. 26%).\n\nThis follows overall racial and ethnic differences in how adults use and view AI even after accounting for education and income. Asian adults tend to stand out for their [higher optimism about AI](https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2026/06/17/racial-and-ethnic-differences-in-how-adults-use-and-view-ai/#views-about-ai).\n\nThere were modest or no differences by gender, education or income.", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/do-americans-think-chatbots-help-or-hurt-people-using-them-for-loneliness-or", "canonical_source": "https://www.pewresearch.org/science/2026/08/25/do-americans-think-chatbots-help-or-hurt-people-using-them-for-loneliness-depression-or-stress/", "published_at": "2026-08-25 13:58:28+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-08-25 14:13:33.818843+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["artificial-intelligence", "ai-ethics", "ai-policy"], "entities": ["Pew Research Center"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/do-americans-think-chatbots-help-or-hurt-people-using-them-for-loneliness-or", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/do-americans-think-chatbots-help-or-hurt-people-using-them-for-loneliness-or.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/do-americans-think-chatbots-help-or-hurt-people-using-them-for-loneliness-or.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/do-americans-think-chatbots-help-or-hurt-people-using-them-for-loneliness-or.jsonld"}}