January CCS Friday – Artificial Intelligence and Pastoral Care
On Friday, January 26 we hosted an online discussion – “Artificial Intelligence and Pastoral Care: Who cares?” – about how social robots and therapeutic chatbots are already being used in mental health care and the implications this has for the future of pastoral and spiritual care. The question of ‘who cares?’ forces us to think about the nature of pastoral relationships and the theology of relationship more broadly. Our special guest was David Lappano, former CCS educator, currently doing MDiv studies in the UK.
CCS Fridays: Online conversations to help us respond faithfully to emerging issues in local contexts. These workshops are open to anyone who might be interested. Each session will be on a Friday from 12:00 to 1:00 CT and in the form of a Zoom workshop. There will be a presentation that will be recorded for future viewing, plus opportunities to engage with the ideas in small groups.
Comments: 1
David, thanks for getting us thinking about how AI could contribute to pastoral care! It was fascinating to hear how seniors enjoy cuddling with stuffed animal robots, chat bots can help mother and daughter relationships, and companion avatars can provide years of listening and accompaniment. You brought up lots of ethical issues, like the limits to empathy that a robot can offer, which I will continue to ponder before handing one over on my next pastoral visit!
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