presented by the Psychoanalytic Society of the William Alanson White Institute
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND ITS IMPLICATIONS: The ChatGPT Therapist and the Inner Analyst
ELIZABETH LUNBECK, Professor of the History of Science, Harvard University
with Hosts & Moderators, Roger Frie, PhD, PsyD, and Nancy Freeman-Carroll, PsyD, Co-Presidents of the Psychoanalytic Society
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 24th, 2025
7:30-9:00pm/Eastern
Held in person at the Institute, 20 West 74th Street, New York City and via live stream online
1.5 CEs are available for attending. In order to receive your credit for attending, follow the instructions that are sent prior to the event.
ABOUT THIS EVENT
The AI therapist is rapidly becoming a dominant figure in the psychotherapeutic landscape, embraced by the public and even more intriguingly by some clinicians—if not as a licensed therapist, then as a companion, a tool with which to better understand patients, or a therapeutic ally. Professor Lunbeck suggests that the appeal of ChatGPT “therapists” is to be found, in part, in their resolution of a longstanding problem for the field: the analyst’s personality, which has long prompted attempts to standardize and mechanize practitioners in the interest of reliability, replicability, and the demands of science. She suggests that Generative AI is the latest in a long series of innovations that not only achieves these goals but also does so in an improvisational and idiosyncratic register. Although observers routinely situate these new clinicians in therapy world’s CBT wing, they come just as much from the heart of the psychoanalytic enterprise.
ABOUT OUR SPEAKER
Elizabeth Lunbeck is a historian of psychoanalysis, psychiatry, and psychology, and is currently Professor and Chair of the Department of the History of Science at Harvard University where she teaches popular courses on psychotherapy and psychoanalysis. She is the author of The Psychiatric Persuasion: Knowledge, Gender, and Power in Modern America;with Bennett Simon; Family Romance, Family Secrets; The Americanization of Narcissism; and four additional co-edited volumes. Lunbeck is an academic program graduate of the Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute, a co-chair of APsA’s University Forum, and board member of PsiAN. She is currently writing a book on the analyst’s self from Freud to AI.
ABOUT THIS SERIES
From its very beginnings, psychoanalysis has existed at the intersection of science and the humanities. In the face of increasing pressures from evidence-based practice and medicalization, what can psychoanalysis learn from the humanities? Collectively, our speakers represent the leading edge in humanities and the arts and bring a diverse array of perspectives to bear. These talks promise to illustrate the manifest and often overlooked links between psychoanalysis and the humanities and provide a unique opportunity for interdisciplinary learning and dialogue.
All speakers will present their talks in person. We encourage everyone who can, to attend in person and continue the tradition of meeting together at the Institute. For those who are unable to join in person, we offer a real-time stream, to reach beyond New York to a broader audience.
This series is presented at no charge to its audience. Please consider making a donation to The Psychoanalytic Society when registering.
Learning Objectives
Overall objectives of this colloquium series:
Describe the many interactions between the humanities and psychoanalysis.
Explain how psychoanalytic practice can benefit from the insights of the humanities.
Objectives this presentation:
Discuss the implications of AI for psychoanalysis.
Explain how AI works and how it may be used.
This series is presented at no charge to its audience. Please consider making a donation to The Psychoanalytic Society when registering.