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Using Psychoanalysis to Understand and Address AI Bias: Refractions in the Digital Mirror

Author(s) : Karyne E. Messina

Reviews and Endorsements

A sensitive, incisive, and illuminating, (albeit disturbing), take on AI. Messina deftly describes the problematic unconscious biases and societal prejudices making their way into the AI systems we rely on today. She is an expert at using psychoanalytic thinking to jostle her reader into an alert and informed stance in relation to these troublesome trends which require psychoanalytic intervention.
Amy Levy, Psy. D, Co-Chair of the Council on AI

Karyne Messina’s book on AI and Psychoanalysis offers profound insights into how inevitable biases in AI stem from unconscious projections from the minds of people who construct AI, and how these biases silently permeate every level of AI design. Understanding these hidden structures is a crucial first step towards the ethical design and use of AI in every dimension of human experience, from the intimacy of psychotherapy to the global impact of social and national policy. Messina’s sophisticated exploration of AI’s enigmas shines an essential spotlight on problems and opportunities inherent in AI’s almost unfathomable potential.
David Scharff, MD. Co-Founder and Former Director, International Psychotherapy Institute; Recipient, Sigourney Award for the Advancement of Psychoanalysis, 2021

In an age of endless AI discourse, Dr. Messina’s book, Using Psychoanalysis to Understand and Address AI Bias: Refractions in the Digital Mirror, stands apart. While others focus on the technical mechanics of AI, Dr. Messina fearlessly examines its psychological foundations, inviting us to look beyond the code and into ourselves. Her groundbreaking application of psychoanalytic concepts, particularly projective identification, illuminates why AI bias is not a bug to be fixed, but a reflection of humanity’s unconscious anxieties, prejudices and longings for connection. With remarkable clarity, the book demonstrates how our societal biases are not merely replicated but are actively mirrored and institutionalized by AI systems. This work is an essential and timely intervention. At a moment fraught with dissension and polarity, Dr. Messina provides a thoughtful framework for understanding the forces at play in our new digital reality. She shows that the path to a more ethical AI is not solely through technical regulation, but through a deeper, more profound form of human self-awareness.
Dr. Harry Gill, MD, PhD. President of HGMD, LLC, Medical Director, Embark Behavioral Health, Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, George Washington University