Exploring the Challenges and Opportunities in Developing Systems to Improve Alcohol Use Disorder through Chatbot Technology

Alcohol use disorder is a debilitating psychiatric condition, which can have devastating effects on the individual, their friends, and family. Most of the communication between patients and their treatment team involves brief verbal exchanges within a clinical setting, which is not necessarily conducive to the needs of the patient in their daily life. In this research, we sought to identify methods by which chatbot technology could be used to enhance treatment for alcohol use disorder (AUD). We also sought to establish an alternative communication medium by which to engage in digestible daily interactions with AUD patients (to monitor the psychological state of the user) as well as their companions (to make them aware of important events and coach them in their interactions with the user).