Human-AI Interactions and the Psychological Triad: A Multi-Domain Survey of Cognitive, Behavioral, and Emotional Impacts

Abstract

As human-AI interactions increasingly reshape social and research landscapes, the risks of overreliance, cognitive offloading, and the nuanced degradation of human agency have become more apparent. This paper addresses these challenges by introducing a novel conceptual framework based on the psychological triad: cognition, behavior, and emotion. Through a comprehensive survey of recent research, we observe that while AI can substantially enhance outcomes such as memory, creativity, and engagement, it simultaneously introduces systemic risks, including diminished critical thinking, skill erosion, and increased anxiety. Emotional outcomes are shown to be similarly mixed, with AI systems offering support and stress reduction while raising critical concerns regarding dependency, inappropriate attachments, and ethical oversight. By synthesizing these findings into the TRIAD model, a recursive framework of appraisal, execution, and regulation, this paper moves beyond isolated metrics toward a systems-level understanding of how AI shapes cognitive depth, behavioral patterns, and emotional development over time. The proposed model underscores the need for responsible, context-aware AI integration and establishes a grounded evaluation framework capable of capturing the complex, human-centered trade-offs inherent in modern technological advancement.