Temporal Dynamics of Anxiety and Career Adaptability in AI-Delivered Versus Human-Delivered Counseling Among Unemployed Adults: A 13-Wave Longitudinal Behavioral Intervention Study.

Authors

Genliang Zhang, Yifan Qian

Published in

International journal of behavioral medicine. Jul 14, 2026. Epub Jul 14, 2026.

Abstract

This study examined temporal trajectories of anxiety and career adaptability in unemployed adults receiving a structured biweekly counseling intervention delivered either through an AI-delivered system or through human counselors.
In this 6-month randomized longitudinal study, 400 participants were assessed across 13 waves (T0-T12). Linear mixed-effects modeling was used to evaluate onset timing, rate of change, and stabilization patterns across delivery conditions.
Anxiety decreased and career adaptability increased significantly over time in both groups. However, the AI-delivered condition showed steeper reductions in anxiety and faster gains in career adaptability than the human-delivered condition. Differences between conditions were reflected in rate of change rather than onset timing.
Both delivery formats were associated with improvement, but AI-delivered support was associated with faster longitudinal change within the structured intervention protocol. These findings suggest that delivery modality may shape the temporal dynamics of psychological change in structured behavioral interventions for unemployed adults.

PMID:
42449062
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 15 Jul 2026.

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