Barriers and Facilitators to the Use of Large Language Model-Based Conversational Agents in Mental Healthcare: A Systematic Review
Ravi Shankar, Amaevia Lim, Qian Xu · 2026
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Description
Ravi Shankar, Amaevia Lim, and Qian Xu review chatbot use in mental health care in a 2026 paper. Over a billion people live with mental health conditions, and care gaps top three quarters in poorer countries. Chat agents built on large language models promise reach, but real-world evidence is still young.
Eight databases were searched for studies from 2022 into early 2026. Twenty-seven studies with over twenty-two thousand participants across twelve countries qualified. The review sorts findings into barrier and helper domains using an implementation framework. Five barrier domains and four helper domains emerged from the synthesis. Most evidence remains pre-clinical, which tempers the promise. The map helps health systems plan safe, realistic rollouts.
Catalog record
| CREATOR | Ravi Shankar, Amaevia Lim, Qian Xu |
|---|---|
| YEAR | 2026 |
| COLLECTION | PAPERS |
| FORMAT | TXT |
| FILE SIZE | 33 KB |
| VERSION | 1.0 |
| LICENSE | CC BY 4.0 |
| RIGHTS | CC BY |
| SOURCE | Europe PMC |