Children are getting therapy from chatbots that displace human support. Generative tools are turning innocent social photos into sextortion material and CSAM. Companion apps are building emotional dependencies that draw kids out of human relationships. Underneath all of it is the same problem: AI is a super-genius junior intern. It reads fast, knows a lot, and it lacks experience with which to exercise judgment. Most adults, let alone kids, don't have the experience to direct it or catch its mistakes.
This session covers the AI-driven risks reaching minors, suggested guidelines for child-AI interaction, and a framework professionals can use both to protect the kids in their cases and to use AI well in their own work. Participants leave with three take-home exercises.
Learning Objectives:
1. The participant will be able to identify AI-mediated harm patterns, including AI as therapy substitute, AI companion attachment, AI-mediated grooming, and AI-generated imagery of minors, in cases they are already working.
2. The participant will be able to describe how generative AI produces deepfakes, conversational agents, and synthetic media, and explain what that means for evidence handling, clinical interpretation, and school response.
3. The participant will be able to articulate suggested guidelines for child-AI interaction and translate them into guidance for parents and caregivers.
4. The participant will be able to apply a question-based framework, including the Critique Technique and a custom-instructions block, that treats AI as a low-trust thinking partner for better-informed decisions, both in their own work and as a model for the families they advise.
