SBIR Phase I: A mental health screening tool for youth using AI and game-based technology

这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目的更广泛的影响是改善儿科心理健康结果。 据估计，20%的儿童患有可诊断的心理健康状况，其中一半将在14岁之前出现症状和体征。自杀是10岁以上儿童死亡的第二大原因;得不到干预或适当服务的受影响儿童长大成人后会产生不良后果。 拟议的项目开发了一个现代化的心理健康筛选器，通过跟踪类似于身高、体重、听力、视力和其他健康迹象的心理健康生命体征，为临床医生提供装备，并教育家庭。这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目将推进一个新的心理健康筛查工具。在一个游戏化的网络平台上，4-18岁的儿童将参与一个动态问题集，旨在确定被称为心理健康问题指标的风险因素。该筛选器将人工智能用于语音和面部生物标志物、情感分析和机器学习的新颖组合，将提供医生和家庭使用的首个心理健康基线，以更好地了解儿童独特的心理健康状况。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is improve pediatric mental health outcomes. An estimated twenty percent of children suffer with a diagnosable mental health condition and half of those will show signs and symptoms before the age of 14. Suicide is the second leading cause of death among children aged 10+; affected children that do not receive intervention or appropriate services grow into adults with adverse outcomes. The proposed project develops a modern mental health screener to equip clinicians and educate families by tracking mental health vital signs similar to height, weight, hearing, vision and other signs of health. This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will advance a new mental health screening tool. In a gamified, web-based platform, children aged 4-18 will engage in a dynamic question set designed to identify risk factors known as indicators of mental health concerns. Using a novel combination of artificial intelligence for voice and facial biomarkers, sentiment analysis and machine learning, the screener will provide a first-of-its-kind mental health baseline used by doctors and families to better understand the child’s unique mental health.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.