WoeBot is a robot that gives you a therapy session at your desk

WoeBot is a rointernet bot that gives you a therapy session at your deskWoeBot is a robot that gives you a therapy session at your deskThis we know Too many people struggle with their mental health in silence, especially at work. The stigma around mental health is still strong.Its time to change that. About one in five Americansare depressed, a condition that can wreck a persons mood, relationships, and productivity. More than half of people suffering from depression havent sought any treatment for it in the past year despite the painful consequences.Enter Silicon Valley techies with a solution that cuts out the middle man - or any man at all. If you cant (or dont want to) talk to humans about your problems, why not try a judgment-free chatbot?Created by a team of Stanford psychologists, WoeBot is a Facebook Messenger bot thats programmed to monitor your moods by checking in with you daily on how youre feeling.Heres how it works WoeBot is based on cognitive behavioral therapy princip les where you learn to break out of negative patterns by identifying their causes and by putting those negative thoughts in perspective.You can tell WoeBot how youre feeling and it will offer feedback, and suggest helpful videos and word games.I can capture patterns of your moodWhen I tried the two-week free trial, WoeBot first began by explaining its purpose to me Im hoping to capture a snapshot of your emotional life as it unfolds in real timeThe aim is that over time I can capture patterns of your mood that we can reflect on together and perhaps even link certain moods to certain situations.The word capture caught me off guard. Was this a chat with a friendly robot or an animal poacher?I welches never under any delusion that I was talking to a real therapist, but for those that may feel like youre talking to someone with a medical license, Woebot offers a disclaimer.This might surprise you, butI am a robot, WoeBot will tell you before beginning a session. As smart as I may seem, Im not capable of really understanding what you need.This low bar of expectations made me feel like I was wasting my time. To spice the session up, I decided to go off script from the multiple choice, pre-selected answers Woebot offered me in conversations. I typed the word suicide and Woebot immediately responded since I had triggered its crisis systems.If you tell WoeBot about suicidal thoughts or self-harm, it will direct you to emergency help services, but it wont get you physically there. After informing me of emergency hotlines, Woebot changed topics and asked if I would like to select an anxiety buster activity or listen to relaxing music.The interaction served as one more reminder that I was talking to an algorithm, filled with sophisticated rules and systems, yes, but not human empathy. If I really had needed serious help, I shouldnt turn to a chatbot.We trust robots with our feelings more than humansSo if WoeBot doesnt believe its really understanding what you need, whats the benefit in using it?It appears that simply having our words heard- even by a robot- helps alleviate a lot of our stress. At the very least, WoeBot has been found to have more value than a self-help e-book. Before WoeBot was released to the commercial masses, it was subjected to empirical research and peer review. In a 70-participant experiment, people who used WoeBot over a self-help e-book self-reported lower depression and anxiety levels.Apparently, we also feel more comfortable talking to robot therapists than human ones. A 2014 study on a similar therapy bot found that participants who thought they were talking to a robot therapist were more likely to disclose what was really bothering them and have a productive therapy session.When the participants were told that humans were behind the virtual therapist with a human face, they would clam up and show less signs of sadness. We feel less judged when we think its only a computer on the other side, researchers concluded.Not HIPA A-compliantBut significant ethical and privacy hurdles remain for therapy chat bots to go mainstream. WoeBot promises that a human may never see what you type but thats not a promise it can keep. WoeBot is not a licensed medical provider bound by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act to keep your medical information private. Although WoeBot will anonymize its users, Facebook can still read the content of your messages and know exactly who you are.When therapy and technology collide, it also inevitably leads to ethical minefields. As reported by The Verge, therapists on the Talkspace app are not always able to report patients to authorities when they discuss dangerous situations due to the apps anonymity.So talk about your feelings with a therapy bot if it helps you work through problems. But know that for better or worse, a bot is not the only one listening in.CORRECTION (11/27/17) This article originallycontained an imprecise description of the ability of therapis ts on the Talkspace app to report patients to authorities.

Determining Active Duty Rank for Prior Service

Determining Active Duty Rank for Prior ServiceDetermining Active Duty Rank for Prior ServicePrior tafelgeschirr members who enlist in the active duty Army will have their initial enlistment rank determined as follows Current Army Reserve and Army National Guard Members A current member of the Army Reserves or Army National Guard who has completed Initial Active Duty Training (IADT)?? (1) If prior service applicant has elend been awarded an MOS and enlists within 12 months from the date released from active duty (IADT), the enlistment pay grade will be the grade held at time of release from IADT, unless the Reserve Component has promoted the applicant to a higher grade. Applicant must produce DA Form 4187 approving the promotion to the higher grade. (2) If applicant has been awarded an MOS and enlists within 12 months from the date released from active duty (IADT), the enlistment pay grade will be the grade held at time of release from IADT but not less than E-2. (3) If applicant has been awarded an MOS and has 12 months service after release from IADT, the enlistment grade will be the grade currently held up to the grade of SPC (E-5). Applicants in the Army Reserves and Army National Guard who hold the rank of SGT (E-5) and above, will have their active duty grades determined according to the rules below.? Former Members of the Regular Army, Reserves, and National Guard (1) If applicant was last separated from any Component or is a current member of the Army Reserves or Army National Guard in grades E-1 through E-4 with not mora than 7 years Active Federal Service (AFS) and enlists within 24 months from the date of separation, the enlistment grade will be the same grade held at time of separation. If enlisting more than 24 months from completion of military service obligation, reduce one grade for every additional 6 months, but do not go below the grade of PV2 (E-2) unless separated as PV1 (E-1). (2) If applicant was last separated from the active duty Army in the grade of SGT (E-5) with not more than 12 years total active service and enlists within 24 months following separation, or is a current member of the Army National Guard or Army Reserves, the enlistment grade will be SGT, provided the applicant has completed the appropriate NCOES leadership requirements or its equivalent and provided a valid vacancy exists for the primary military occupational series (PMOS) in the grade of SGT. If no vacancy exists in former PMOS, the enlistment grade will be SGT, provided applicant accepts retraining in the MOS provided by the Army Human Resources Command and does not have more than 12 years active Federal service. If enlisting after 24 months from completion of military service, the enlistment grade will be determined by the Army Human Resources Command. (3) If applicant was last separated from any Component or is a current member of the Army Reserves or Army National Guard in the grade of SGT with not more than 12 years AFS, or in the grade of SSG (E-6) with not more than 17 years AFS, or in the grade of SFC (E-7) through SGM (E-9) , regardless of years of service but with fewer than 20 years, the enlistment grade and eligibility will be determined by the Army Human Resources Command. Applicants with more than the numbers of years indicated above are not eligible for enlistment in the active duty Army. Former Members of Non-Army Components Former members of the Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard, including current and former members of their Reserve Components,will have their active duty Army rank determined by the Army Human Resources Command, after an examination of their military records and experience. All prior service, regardless of component, are authorized to enlist at the advanced paygrade for non-prior service, if that is more advantageous.

How to Develop Outstanding Customer Service Policies

How to Develop Outstanding Customer Service PoliciesHow to Develop Outstanding Customer Service PoliciesTo be competitive, all businesses must adhere to outstanding customer service practices and policies. If your business does not have a customer service policyor needs to revamp existing ones, start by creating an outline. What to Consider When Developing Your Policies The following questions can serve as a foundational guide for developing your business plan, feasibility study, or business model to create or improve customer satisfaction. Use these to create your outline Do you have a return or exchange policy?How will you resolve customer complaints?How can customers resolve problems, place orders, or reach you with questions? (For example, will you have an autoresponder or will customers receive a personal response?)Will you join the Better geschftlicher umgang Bureau, professional associations, or other groups or associations that can boost your credibility and visibility?Wh at is your privacy policy? (All websites must have a privacy statement if you capture or exchange any kind of data about your site visitors or customers. If you capture medical data, you may also need to comply with HIPAA confidentiality laws as well.) Importance of Good Customer Service How to Lose Customers Attracting customers is half your goal in business. You also need to focus on developing strategies for customer retention because repeat and referral customers are vital to sustain and grow your business. To accomplish this, it is essential to have customer service policies in place.Treat Customers, Employees, and Stakeholders Equally Customer policies and relationship standards should be part of your mission statement, neither receiving substandard or preferential treatment over employees, contractors, or even stakeholders.This concept of treating all as equal has received much attention and has becomea business model for success for many mega-corporations. In Firms of E ndearment How World-Class Companies Profit From Passion and Purpose, authorsRajendra Sisodia, David B. Wolfe, andJagdish N. Sheth write, Successful companies that spend millions of dollars less on marketing and advertising than their industry counterparts, but have found tremendous success by following a business model that values stakeholders, employees, and customers equally. Successful Business Tip If you have customers, you absolutely must have a customer service policy in place. If your business has a website, information regarding your customer service policies and privacy practices should be clearly and prominently stated for your customers- not buried deep within your website.