Publication Name	World Journal of Psychiatry
Manuscript ID	127486
Country	Italy

Category	Psychiatry
Manuscript Type	Minireviews
Article Title	Artificial intelligence as a potential attachment figure: Synthetic intimacy, emotional dependence and psychiatric risk
Manuscript Source	Invited Manuscript
All Author List	Marianna Mazza, Antonio Sottile, Marco Lanzetta and Giuseppe Marano
Funding Agency and Grant Number
Corresponding Author	Marianna Mazza, Assistant Professor, MD, PhD, Department of Neuroscience, Head-Neck and Chest, Section of Psychiatry, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Agostino Gemelli IRCCS, Largo Agostino Gemelli 8, Rome 00168, Italy. marianna.mazza@policlinicogemelli.it
Key Words	Artificial intelligence; Human-computer interaction; Mental health; Psychiatry; Attachment; Synthetic intimacy; Emotional dependence; ChatGPT
Core Tip	Conversational artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly used not only as an informational tool but also as a source of companionship, reassurance, and emotional support. This minireview examines how synthetic intimacy and Human-AI Attachment may provide short-term benefits while also fostering dependence, social withdrawal, compulsive reassurance seeking, or amplification of psychiatric symptoms. We propose the AI-mediated attachment phenotype as a provisional, hypothesis-generating clinical framework and integrate attachment-based, psychiatric, and psychoanalytic perspectives. Clinicians should assess not only whether patients use AI, but also the psychological function it assumes and whether it supports or replaces human relationships and professional care.
Citation	Mazza M, Sottile A, Lanzetta M, Marano G. Artificial intelligence as a potential attachment figure: Synthetic intimacy, emotional dependence and psychiatric risk. World J Psychiatry 2026; In press

Received	2026-09-01 02:18
Peer-Review Started	2026-09-01 02:19
First Decision by Editorial Office Director
Return for Revision	2026-09-08 05:59
Revised	2026-09-13 13:00
Publication Fee Transferred
Second Decision by Editor	2026-10-23 02:59
Second Decision by Editor-in-Chief
Final Decision by Editorial Office Director	2026-10-23 09:10
Articles in Press	2026-10-23 09:10
Edit the Manuscript by Language Editor
Typeset the Manuscript

ISSN	2220-3206 (online)
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Copyright	©Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2026. No commercial re-use. See Permissions. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc.
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