AI Companions May Stunt How Teens Learn Relationships

Author: Arizona State University
Published: 29 Jun 2026
Publication Details: Peer-Reviewed | Research, Study, Analysis

Contents: Synopsis - Definition - Introduction - Main - Insights, Updates - Related Publications

Synopsis: This research, a peer-reviewed commentary published in The Lancet Child and Adolescent Health, examines how teenagers' growing use of AI chatbots for advice on friendships, family conflict and romance could reshape the way young people learn to handle human relationships. Drawing on survey data and input from a youth advisory board of high school students, the Arizona State University authors carry weight because they pair clinical developmental expertise with the firsthand perspectives of the teens actually using these tools. The work is useful for parents, educators and policymakers, and it gives particular attention to groups who may benefit most from accessible AI guidance, including rural teens, disabled youth, LGBTQIA+ adolescents and those who lack access to counseling.*

At a Glance

• 1 - A Pew Research Center study found that 64% of U.S. adolescents use interactional AI.
• 2 - The authors flag "relational displacement," where teens swap human conversations for AI and lose chances to build social skills.
• 3 - Lead author Thao Ha is running a National Institute of Mental Health study following 300 teens and their partners over 18 months to track how digital interactions affect their relationships and mental health.

Topic Definition: AI Companionship

AI companionship refers to the use of conversational artificial intelligence tools - chatbots and virtual agents such as ChatGPT, Replika, Claude and Character.AI - as a source of emotional support, advice and social interaction. For adolescents in particular, this often means turning to a chatbot for immediate, nonjudgmental guidance on sensitive matters like friendships, family tension and romantic relationships. The appeal lies in constant availability and consistent validation, yet that same reliability raises questions about whether such interactions can substitute for the messy, emotionally charged human exchanges through which young people typically develop skills like conflict resolution, boundary-setting and perspective-taking.

Introduction

AI Companionship Poses Risks for Teen Development

Chatbots have potential to benefit relational and emotional health, but lack needed safeguards.

As teenagers increasingly turn to artificial intelligence chatbots for advice about friendships, family conflicts and romantic ties, researchers are raising concerns that the technology could disturb how young people learn to navigate human relationships.

AI-powered conversational tools such as ChatGPT, Replika, Claude and Character.AI are becoming a common source of emotional support for teenagers. Writing in The Lancet Child and Adolescent Health, researchers from Arizona State University say the technology offers immediate, nonjudgmental guidance and has potential to benefit emotional development. But without safeguards and careful design, the authors warn that reliance on these systems may bypass opportunities for young people to develop critical relationship skills through person-to-person interactions.

"The technologies are developing super-fast, faster than we can keep up with as scientists, faster than governance and policy can keep up with," said lead author Thao Ha, an associate professor in the Department of Psychology at ASU. Her co-authors are psychology doctoral student Jennifer Figueroa, post-doctoral research scholar Taren McGray, and youth advisory board members Jessica Ramirez and Susana Ortega, who are 16- and 17-year-old high school students in Tucson.

Students who met with the researchers described how they and their peers often use AI to seek advice about personal and often sensitive relationship challenges.

"I don't think I really expected for so many teens to have the same concerns or thoughts when it came to AI," said Ortega, a high school senior. "We all mostly had concerns about how AI was replacing actual human connection and how it limits a lot of those needs that humans have that cannot be replaced with a computer artificial intelligence."

Adolescence is a crucial period for learning skills such as emotional regulation, conflict resolution, perspective-taking and boundary-setting, Ha said. Those competencies are typically developed through emotionally charged interactions with peers, romantic partners and family members, she said.

"People don't realize that relational learning happens during the teenage years and that these moments of social connection are little building blocks that become bigger things that will benefit you throughout life," Ha said. "You really need those building blocks, so you actually learn the skills that you need to thrive in your relationships."

Main Content

Rampant Use of AI

The researchers point to survey data showing that AI use among teens is widespread. A Pew Research Center study found that 64% of U.S. adolescents use interactional AI, while research from the Center for Democracy and Technology found that 42% have used AI chatbots for friendship-related purposes and 19% for romantic relationships.

Teenagers told the ASU researchers that current approaches to regulating AI, such as age verification, are ineffective and do not reflect their needs. Others described how AI use is becoming difficult to avoid, with one teen explaining that "there is almost no way not to use it anymore", limiting the ability to use it intentionally.

Ha and colleagues highlighted two significant risks:

The first, what they call "relational displacement," occurs when adolescents substitute AI interactions for conversations with other people. The authors argue that avoiding difficult discussions with friends, family members or romantic partners may limit opportunities to develop relationship skills that help protect against depression, anxiety and loneliness.

Youth participants cited examples ranging from seeking chatbot validation after arguments with partners to using AI for homework help instead of reaching out to classmates, potentially reducing everyday opportunities for social connection.

The second concern, termed "maladaptive relational learning," involves adolescents developing unrealistic expectations about human relationships. Because AI systems often provide immediate responses and consistent validation, it may reinforce youths' unhealthy, fixed ideas about relationships and at the same time young users may come to expect similar behavior from friends and romantic partners, the authors said. Over time, that could reinforce unhealthy relationship patterns and increase vulnerability to rejection, dating violence and mental health problems.

"With artificial intelligence, it's programmed to like you and it knows what to say to satisfy what you're feeding it," Ortega said. "If you're given full satisfaction on everything, you don't have learning experience with challenges or obstacles."

Gleaning Benefits

To understand more fully how digital technologies are reshaping young minds, Ha is leading a major study funded by the National Institute of Mental Health. The researchers are recruiting 300 adolescents and their romantic partners to follow over 18 months to understand when, how, and in which contexts digital interactions benefit or harm their relationships, mental health, and academic achievement. Shared data from teens' mobile devices will give the researchers real-time digital interactions to analyze and gain insights into the role of technology in teen relationships and mental health.

In the Lancet article, Ha and co-authors acknowledge that AI can provide meaningful benefits, particularly for adolescents who face barriers to traditional support systems. Teens who are rural, disabled, LGBTQIA+, or have limited access to counseling may find AI offers accessible information and guidance when other resources are unavailable.

"AI is cheaper than a therapist, it makes information more accessible and readily available for those who may not seek support," one teen told the ASU researchers.

When designed with developmental considerations, AI could scaffold self-reflection and redirect adolescents toward human engagement rather than substitution, the researchers said.

Rather than discouraging AI use altogether, the authors call for more research into how interactions with AI affect adolescent development over time. They also urge schools, communities and policymakers to invest in relationship education, counseling services and opportunities for young people to discuss relationships openly.

"Supporting adolescent mental health will require ensuring that AI systems are used in ways that support relational learning," the authors wrote, "while also protecting the real-world experiences through which young people learn to love and care for others."

Insights, Analysis, and Developments

Attribution/Source(s): This peer reviewed publication was selected for publishing by the editors of Disabled World (DW) due to its relevance to the disability community. Originally authored by Arizona State University and published on 29 Jun 2026, this content may have been edited for style, clarity, or brevity.

* Editorial additions by Ian C. Langtree.