Ana-Maria Bucur awarded for AI research detecting depression

Romanian researcher Ana-Maria Bucur has been awarded the best doctoral thesis in Natural Language Processing (NLP) by the Spanish Society for Natural Language Processing (SEPLN). Her research focuses on using artificial intelligence to identify early signals of mental health issues, including depression, self-harm, and pathological gambling, by analyzing text, images, and videos on social media.

The computational models analyze linguistic patterns and user behavior. For instance, the research found that individuals with depression tend to use first-person pronouns more frequently, use past-tense verbs more often, and use future-tense verbs less frequently. These tools are designed as digital screening aids to provide specialists with additional data for evaluation, rather than as a replacement for professional diagnosis.

Bucur emphasized that while technology can facilitate access to support, it should serve as a complementary instrument to professional assessment. The importance of such research is highlighted by World Health Organization data, which estimated that approximately 322 million people worldwide were living with depression in 2024.