Silverfield professor explores the future of counseling in the age of AI

September 29, 2026

Artificial intelligence can generate a response in seconds. It can simulate a conversation, recognize emotions and provide information on a wide range of mental health topics.

But can it understand what it means to sit with another person’s pain?

That question is at the heart of Dr. Rakesh Maurya’s research. An associate professor in the school counseling program at the University of North Florida, Maurya is exploring how emerging technology can support counselors while preserving the human connection at the center of the profession.

His research explores two seemingly different areas: empathy and compassion in counseling, and the ethical use of artificial intelligence in counseling and counselor education. At their core, both center on the same question: How can counselors better support others while protecting the relationships, professional judgment and well-being that make counseling effective?

Understanding empathy without becoming overwhelmed

Maurya's research on empathy began with a fundamental question: What happens when counselors deeply connect with the emotions of their clients?

In a study examining counselors’ lived experiences, Maurya and his colleagues found that empathy involves emotional, cognitive and physiological processes. A key concept was self-other differentiation, the ability to understand another person's experience without taking that experience on as your own.

That distinction can help counselors avoid becoming overwhelmed by their clients’ emotions, which can contribute to fatigue, burnout and blurred professional boundaries.

Effective empathy, Maurya argues, means staying close enough to understand a client's experience while remaining grounded enough to help.

That idea led him to explore compassion as a complement to empathy and ultimately to develop the Mindful Empathic Engagement (MEE) model. The model examines how empathy can lead to either compassionate engagement or empathic distress.

One concept within the model, “Reflecting Nearby,” describes staying close enough to another person's pain to understand and support them without becoming overwhelmed.

Maurya is now developing an empathy training program for counselors-in-training based on these ideas, focusing on mindful awareness, emotional regulation and self-other differentiation.

What happens when the client is AI?

That same interest in the human experience has led Maurya into one of today's fastest-moving areas of research: artificial intelligence.

Soon after ChatGPT emerged, Maurya began exploring whether AI could give counselors-in-training another way to practice their clinical skills.

His research led to the ChatGPT Client Simulation (CCS) model, which uses AI to simulate conversations between counselors and clients. The goal is not to replace traditional training, but to give students additional opportunities to practice in a flexible, low-pressure environment.

In research involving 10 client scenarios, Maurya and his colleagues found that ChatGPT could simulate clients with consistency, emotional expression, cultural sensitivity and self-awareness. The research also revealed limitations, including overly idealized responses and the absence of nonverbal communication.

A 2025 pilot study took the research a step further, examining voice-based AI simulations and finding strong fidelity in areas including client authenticity, empathy and emotional expression. The findings suggest AI simulations could supplement traditional role-play and give students more opportunities to practice foundational counseling skills.

But Maurya emphasizes an important boundary: AI should support human professionals, not replace them.

Keeping counseling human

Maurya has also examined AI as a mental health psychoeducational resource. His research evaluating ChatGPT responses to questions involving depression, anxiety, substance use, health and interpersonal concerns found the responses were generally accurate, clear and relevant, with an empathic tone and appropriate recommendations to seek professional support.

At the same time, his work highlights significant concerns about privacy, cultural bias, inaccurate or incomplete information and the limitations of AI in mental health settings. Maurya advocates for ethical guidelines and appropriate training to help counseling professionals determine when and how AI should be used responsibly.

His work has contributed to national and international conversations about AI and mental health, including appearances on The Thoughtful Counselor podcast and coverage by Psychiatry Advisor, Clinical Advisor, SINC Media and La Vanguardia in Spain. His research now extends into school counseling, where he is developing ethical guidance for school counselors and examining how AI can responsibly support student well-being and academic success.

For Maurya, the rapid development of AI does not make the human side of counseling less important. It makes understanding it more important.

As AI moves further into classrooms, workplaces and the counseling room, Maurya's research asks how technology can strengthen the work of counselors without replacing the relationships that make that work meaningful.

The future of counseling may include artificial intelligence. But at its heart, Maurya believes, it will still be human.