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Artificial intelligence (AI) is a powerful tool, and its effects are far-reaching. Not only does it impact the business and professional world, but it is increasingly prevalent in social, creative and academic spaces as well — where kids are coming face-to-face with this fast-growing technology.
To help parents navigate this topic, Michael Redovian, MD, child adolescent psychiatrist, and Sarah Rush, MD, vice president of medical informatics, sat down to answer some of your questions about AI.
Dr. Redovian: It’s important to first assess what your child already knows. Start by addressing any misconceptions they might have, and make sure you’re talking about AI in the context of being a tool.
Some kids might be interested in the nitty-gritty of it all (algorithms, predictive modeling, etc.). But if you emphasize AI’s role as a tool or a toy that needs to be used appropriately, you’re on the right track.
Dr. Rush: AI is math, not magic!
It is basically a super-powered pattern finder. It looks at huge numbers of examples and uses math to make its best guess about what should come next. That’s why AI can feel impressive and why it can mess up. It doesn’t “understand” like a person does.
Use AI like a learning tool. It can help you brainstorm or explain a topic in a different way. But it is important that you read everything it writes and check it with a trusted source (parent, teacher, textbook, reliable website).
Dr. Sarah Rush, vice president of medical informatics, and Dr. Michael Redovian, child adolescent psychiatrist, respond to questions on AI use by sharing their clinical perspectives.
Dr. Redovian: There’s always the risk that kids can over-rely on a given tool, especially one as powerful as AI. Our job as parents, educators and responsible adults is to educate the kids on how to use the tool safely and effectively. This means that if they’re going to use AI to help them better understand a topic, show them how to make sure the answer is valid.
If they’re tempted to use AI to produce an essay, talk to them about how these types of essays typically feel “soulless” because there’s no personal connection to the material — and how teachers have tools at their disposal to check whether something is genuine or AI-produced.
Trying to tell kids that they shouldn’t use AI is probably not going to help, so we must educate them on proper use.
Dr. Redovian: In a study by Common Sense Media, about 48% of kids who tried AI chatbots only used it a couple of times. They looked at the chatbot as a novelty, gave it a shot and found that it wasn’t nearly as cool as they thought it would be.
That said, we typically see that kids who tend to be lonely or feel misunderstood by their peers might be more likely to rely more heavily on AI relationships. The key thing to remember is that chatbots are designed to keep people engaged, so they’re more likely to tell a kid that their thoughts and ideas are good. Kids might not get that feedback from peers, which could lead to social difficulties down the road. But it’s too early to know for sure whether it will.
Dr. Rush: One of the best ways to set boundaries around AI is to anchor your approach in a few rules that don’t change: protect your data, keep yourself accountable and use AI to help — not to replace — your judgment.
Start with data security. You don’t control what happens to everything you type or upload after you press “enter.” So, share the minimum needed to get help, and do not enter sensitive or private information.
Next, be clear about responsible and ethical use. In simple terms, that means using AI in ways that are honest, safe and fair.
“Honest” means you don’t use AI to pretend you did work you didn’t do, to fake messages or images or to mislead someone about what is true.
“Safe” means you don’t rely on AI alone for serious decisions, and you don’t use it in ways that could harm someone — like giving medical advice, encouraging risky behavior or helping with bullying.
“Fair” means you remember that AI can reflect bias, so you don’t use it to make decisions about people (like who gets an opportunity or who is “at fault”) without human review and a clear reason.
Finally, build in verification. AI can sound confident and still be wrong. Treat its output like a first draft, check important facts with reliable sources and slow down when the stakes are high.
Dr. Redovian: The most important thing parents can do for their kids is to foster open communication. Even if you don’t know every single nook and cranny of the application, showing interest will show your kids that you care.
Parents can also check websites like Common Sense Media to find tools surrounding setting limits on electronics/social media/etc. It’s crucial to be familiar with the parental control settings on your kids’ devices and apps.
It’s also important to model healthy boundaries with technology. Kids are much more likely to do what you ask them to do if they don’t think you’re being a hypocrite!
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