Prosocial Artificial Intelligence
Can AI be a power for good, and what does that mean for coaching psychology?
The concept and application of artificial intelligence has been big news for a while, and I’m always interested in resources that explore how we might most positively use AI in the future. I also care about what AI and technology mean for coaching and coaching psychology. Here’s some resources and thoughts on that which I thought might be helpful to share.
To be clear on my position, I’ve done some research into AI in psychological contexts. I’ve worked with people who have deep expertise in AI and machine learning, who I learned a lot from.
I think there is a meaningful and useful application of AI, but we need to regulate the use - and possibly the development of - AI. The history and development of psychology as a field has shown us that we need to be ethical in how we move science forward. That benefits not just the people involved, but we’ll also have better science as a result of being thoughtful in how we develop AI applications.
Shaping AI for Good: ProSocial hybrid intelligence for a thriving future
In this recording from Prosocial World, humanitarian leader Cornelia Walther and evolutionary biologist David Sloan Wilson explore how we can build AI systems that truly serve people and the planet.
They dive into the concept of Prosocial AI, technology that’s designed to support human connection, equity, and environmental sustainability — and the emerging field of hybrid intelligence, where human empathy and creativity team up with AI’s speed and precision.
It is a fascinating exploration of whether AI can be prosocial - I highly recommend it!
Designing Effective and Safe Digital Coaching Interventions: A Contextual Behavioural Science Perspective
If you’re wondering what this means for coaching, I summarised some of my thoughts in a recent paper for the Coaching Psychologist journal. The argument I make is that digital interventions and those that use AI can be effective and safe but that they need to have an impact that is as good as, or better than, a traditional coaching intervention to justify the climate impact of AI and technology. We also need to ensure they are safe to use and we should know what they are activating to ensure they are safe. We still need more research to show how most coaching approaches work.
This section of the paper outlines some of the key considerations:
‘We know that the advances in technology and AI happening in our world at the moment have both the power for good but can also have a negative impact on the world. This is especially true of digital coaching interventions that aim to have a direct psychological impact on individuals. It’s important that we ensure ethical and safe development of effective digital coaching interventions. This paper aimed to provide a helpful summary of both the value and ethical issues related to digital coaching interventions, with the goal of making these more readily accessible to coaching psychologists.
To make the climate cost of digital coaching interventions worthwhile, they need to offer comparable efficacy and safety to traditionally delivered coaching interventions. To show how we can improve the precision of digital coaching interventions, this paper outlined CBS theory and research that can inform the design of effective digital coaching interventions. It is hoped that this understanding will inspire coaching psychology researchers to explore additional processes of change from a variety of coaching psychology approaches that can underpin effective and safe digital coaching interventions.
Finally, by exploring various ethical issues in relation to the BPS Code of Ethics and Conduct (2021), it is hoped that coaching psychologists see the role they can play in mitigating risks and ensuring digital coaching interventions are delivered with competence, integrity, respect and responsibility at their core. There are no simple answers to these ethical issues and often the best way to move forward is not clear.’
You can access the full paper through the Coaching Psychologist journal, which is free for BPS members, using the link below.
Skews, R. (2025). Designing effective and safe digital coaching interventions: A Contextual Behavioural Science perspective. Coaching Psychologist, 20(3).