Building Standards
Mental Health in the AI Era
Standards That Matter
Artificial intelligence is opening new possibilities in mental health—from digital companions that support emotional well-being to diagnostic tools that detect risk early. But without clear ethical, inclusive, and enforceable standards, these tools risk reinforcing inequality, harming vulnerable populations, or undermining trust.
At IHCA, we believe standards are not just technical documents. They are a way to shape the future of mental health care: one that is safe, culturally grounded, and designed for all.
Six Ethical Principles
IHCA is building a practice-driven framework for AI mental health governance, grounded in the six ethical principles:
Autonomy
Design systems that respect personal agency and consent, especially for adolescents and caregivers.
Safety & Effectiveness
Pilot and evaluate tools like Qijia AI with real families before scaling. Collaborate with mental health professionals on validation.
Transparency
Open-source assessment models and decision-making logic. Encourage explainability in design.
Responsibility & Accountability
Foster cross-sector collaboration between technologists, practitioners, and communities to share responsibility.
Inclusiveness & Equity
Center voices from developing countries, marginalized populations, and non-English-speaking communities.
Sustainability
Promote models that are free, open, and volunteer-supported; ensure long-term usability and care.
Key Focus Areas
IHCA’s standards effort focuses on domains where mental health meets machine learning—
and where ethical risks and social benefits are most urgent:
Psychological Assessment Models
Defining risk categories, input data types, and bias mitigation strategies for AI-based screening and triage.
Human-AI Interaction in Mental Health
Setting guidelines for how chatbots, agents, and recommendation systems communicate around sensitive topics.
Evaluation
and
Transparency
Establishing public benchmarks, validation pipelines, and protocols for AI mental health tools.
Children
and
Families
Special protocols for use in family environments, including developmental safeguards, linguistic diversity, and cultural adaptability.
The Role of the
Social Innovation Network
IHCA’s AI for Good Social Innovation Network supports this standards-setting work
by providing:
A Civic Infrastructure
To mobilize AI engineers, psychologists, and grassroots users to co-develop responsible tools.
To mobilize AI engineers, psychologists, and grassroots users to co-develop responsible tools.
A Repository of Open-source Projects
Including Qijia AI, that serve as real-world testbeds for ethical principles.
Including Qijia AI, that serve as real-world testbeds for ethical principles.
A Volunteer-based Development Model
To experiment with scalable, non-commercial pathways for ethical innovation.
To experiment with scalable, non-commercial pathways for ethical innovation.
Looking Ahead
We are currently drafting a baseline framework for AI psychological assessment systems, built collaboratively with mental health experts, software developers, and families. This work will be published as an open discussion paper in 2025.
Our hope is to create not only standards, but also a community of practice that grows with them—a living ecosystem where responsible AI mental health solutions are continually tested, improved, and shared.