“People often turn to Google search in some
of their most vulnerable moments,” wrote Megan Jones Bell, Consumer Director
and mental health at Google, in a
blog post. In order to help these people in crisis, the giant of the
technology will soon integrate
pre-written text messages
in its search results including
suicide-related terms.
Encourage people to ask for help
These messages, created in partnership with the International Association for
suicide prevention, aim to reduce
“the stigma attached to asking for help, which helps people
people to get support in times of crisis,” said Megan Jones Bell. They encourage users to
get in touch with people you trust,and make available to them
message templates ready to send.
Among the models displayed, there are for example:
“It’s hard to say, but I have painful thoughts and it
could help me talk, are you available? »
Or
“I am having difficulties at the moment and I need to speak to
someone – can we talk? »
Each message is then accompanied by a “Send a text” button which
allows toopen a messaging applicationand
paste the message
inside. No details were given regarding operation on the version
desk.
This isn’t Google’s first move to help people
suicides on its search engine or other platforms, such as
Youtube. In 2022, the Mountain View firm had already used
artificial intelligence
to detect searches made by people in a state of
crisis. He then directed them to the necessary resources
to help them cope with the situation and get back on their feet.
Source: The
Yard
