Cristina Di Silvio
At the heart of a world torn by visible and invisible conflicts, where geopolitical tensions, economic crises, and technological transformations redefine not only institutional balances but also the fabric of human relationships, mental health emerges as a central, global, and essential issue. It is no longer confined to specialist healthcare services, nor relegated to secondary topics in public discourse or technology policies. Children and adolescents grow immersed in relentless digital streams, constant comparisons, often dysfunctional relational dynamics, online bullying, and emotional exclusion, leaving deep and lasting marks on the human psyche. This shapes a phenomenon that research now frames as a global socio-health emergency (World Health Organization, 2022; UNICEF, 2021).
These conditions are not isolated cases but represent a structural reality in which emotional fragility does not remain confined to subjective experience; instead, it translates into social, economic, and cultural costs, affecting societies’ ability to function in a healthy and resilient way. Scientific literature clearly documents how adverse childhood experiences, including those generated by toxic relationships, abuse, neglect, or digital bullying, interfere with neurobiological development, emotional regulation, and identity construction. These processes produce lasting clinical effects and increase the likelihood of complex psychological disorders, relational difficulties, and risky behaviors in adulthood (Van der Kolk, 2014; Green et al., 2025; Frontiers in Psychology, 2025).
Likewise, large-scale epidemiological research highlights how cyberbullying, in its direct and indirect forms, including social exclusion, the spreading of offensive rumors, and public humiliation, is strongly correlated with post-traumatic stress, depression, and emotional dysregulation in youth (Hinduja & Patchin, 2025). These data confirm that psychological distress can no longer be considered a marginal consequence of contemporary social dynamics, but rather a structural dimension that requires systemic approaches and concrete tools to be effectively addressed.
The contemporary digital context, characterized by the growing adoption of artificial intelligence and sophisticated algorithmic systems, has, on one hand, expanded the possibilities for connection, information, and support; on the other, it has multiplied opportunities for exposure to stressful content, toxic confrontations, digital dependencies, and emotional vulnerabilities, often unmet by traditional care spaces. Ethical reflection on artificial intelligence has highlighted the need to address not only technological risks, but also the profound impact that systems capable of simulating or interpreting emotional states can have on how people think, feel, and relate. This underscores the urgency of transparency, human supervision, legal protections, and explicit ethical criteria for protecting vulnerable populations (Floridi, 2020; Feeling Machines, 2025).
Within this intersection of emotional fragility, technological dynamics, and the search for meaning, the importance of tools that do not merely diagnose, analyze, or track data—but instead facilitate human encounters between those experiencing suffering and those qualified to provide listening, support, and guidance—has clearly emerged. It is precisely in this space that the concrete and paradigmatic experience of MAcurati, a platform created by Arturo Pascale, takes shape. It interprets technology not as an autonomous abstraction, nor as a surrogate for the therapeutic relationship, but as an access infrastructure that reduces the distance between emotional vulnerability and qualified professional support.
MAcurati is not simply a digital service, but a space designed to make psychological care accessible to those who need it. It offers transparent professional profiles, the possibility of informed therapist choice, online sessions that respect privacy, and a free initial consultation. In doing so, it breaks economic, cultural, and psychological barriers that have so far prevented many individuals from accessing support. This vision translates scientific evidence into operational action, because reducing friction between the demand for care and professional provision means intervening at the most delicate and crucial stage—when a person decides whether to seek help or remain isolated.
Modern clinical psychology emphasizes the centrality of the therapeutic relationship as a predictor of significant outcomes in healing processes, often more than the specific technique used. It also highlights the importance of early intervention to reduce the chronicity of distress and to promote emotional regulation and resilience (Lambert & Barley, 2001). When a digital platform can facilitate this encounter, normalize the need to ask for help, and restore centrality to human expertise, it is not merely distributing a service; it is contributing to a profound cultural transformation, redefining the meaning of care and building a social infrastructure of support.
The vision of Arturo Pascale and the realization of MAcurati embody an example of ethical and responsible leadership in an era of digital and social instability. They demonstrate that technology can serve humanity rather than alienate it, that human relationships can be facilitated by technology without being replaced, and that access to care can be expressed as a concrete right rather than a privilege. In a historical phase where public discourse, institutions, and communities are called to confront the complexity of human emotions in the digital age, initiatives like MAcurati show that an ethically oriented model exists—one that recognizes the dignity of individuals and the centrality of mental wellbeing.
The transformation required by our time is not only about developing new technologies, but also about creating new cultures of care. In such cultures, every algorithm, every platform, and every automated system is evaluated not only on technical efficiency, but on its ability to sustain relationships, promote dignity, protect vulnerability, and facilitate access to human expertise. When technology accompanies the person, respecting their complexity without reducing them to a datum or signal, then we can speak of true human progress—a civilization capable of confronting suffering with concrete tools, integrated vision, and collective responsibility.
MAcurati and the vision of Arturo Pascale represent not only a virtuous case, but also a paradigm to study, share, and replicate. They offer a reference point for anyone serious about addressing the relationship between artificial intelligence, society, and mental health. They function as a bridge between fragility and resilience, illuminating the path toward more humane, aware, and resilient societies, capable of transforming vulnerability into strength, suffering into relationship, and care into civilization.
APA Bibliography
Frontiers in Psychology. (2025). Studies on Adverse Childhood Experiences and Digital Trauma. Frontiers Media.
Green, A., Smith, L., & Zhao, M. (2025). Neurobiological impacts of early adversity. Journal of Developmental Neuroscience.
Hinduja, S., & Patchin, J. W. (2025). Cyberbullying and adverse childhood experiences: mental health outcomes in youth. BMC Public Health.
Lambert, M. J., & Barley, D. E. (2001). Research summary on the therapeutic relationship and psychotherapy outcomes. Research in Psychotherapy: Psychopathology, Process and Outcome.
UNICEF. (2021). The State of the World’s Children 2021: On My Mind — Promoting, Protecting and Caring for Children’s Mental Health. UNICEF.
Van der Kolk, B. A. (2014). The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma. Penguin Books.
World Health Organization. (2022). World Mental Health Report 2022: Transforming Mental Health for All. WHO.
Floridi, L. (2020). The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence. Oxford University Press.
Feeling Machines: Ethics, Culture and the Rise of Emotional AI. (2025). Interdisciplinary Journal of AI Ethics.
