Mental Health Counselors
Community and Social Service Occupations- O*NET-SOC code
- 21-1014.00
Counsel and advise individuals and groups to promote optimum mental and emotional health, with an emphasis on prevention. May help individuals deal with a broad range of mental health issues, such as those associated with addictions and substance abuse; family, parenting, and marital problems; stress management; self-esteem; or aging.
- Data source: ILOPublished: 2025
0.28
0.09Range of values carried here0.70Group-level value
Scale, basis and source
Generative AI exposure index, 0–1 as published
Published per ISCO-08 unit group. Linked to this occupation, wholly or in part, by applying U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics crosswalks (ISCO-08 to 2010 SOC, 2010 SOC to 2018 SOC) as published
- Data source: OpenAIPublished: 2023
0.265
0.000Range of values carried here0.844Scale, basis and source
Task-level exposure
Exposed tasks only27 rated tasks · 12 tasks with β ≥ 0.5 (44.4%)
β = direct exposure (E1) + 0.5 × exposure when tools are available (E2), per the source repository's definition.
- Source unit: O*NET 27.2 tasks → O*NET 31.0 occupation code
- All rated tasks are in the O*NET 31.0 task list.
- Source
- OpenAI "GPTs are GPTs" exposure rubric
- Release
- gh-main-0471612
- License
- MIT License, Copyright (c) 2024 OpenAI
| Task (O*NET 20.1) | Claude.aiRaw / share % |
|---|---|
Guide clients in the development of skills or strategies for dealing with their problems.21-1014.00 | 0.529891.8 |
Collect information about clients through interviews, observation, or tests.21-1014.00 | 0.01282.2 |
Plan, organize, or lead structured programs of counseling, work, study, recreation, or social activities for clients.21-1014.00 | 0.01212.1 |
Encourage clients to express their feelings and discuss what is happening in their lives, helping them to develop insight into themselves or their relationships.21-1014.00 | 0.01152.0 |
Assess patients for risk of suicide attempts.21-1014.00 | 0.00380.7 |
Counsel clients or patients, individually or in group sessions, to assist in overcoming dependencies, adjusting to life, or making changes.21-1014.00 | 0.00270.5 |
Refer patients, clients, or family members to community resources or to specialists as necessary.21-1014.00 | 0.00220.4 |
Collaborate with other staff members to perform clinical assessments or develop treatment plans.21-1014.00 | 0.00210.4 |
| Not observed on any surface — 18 task(s) — These tasks have no row in the source for this release. The 0 in the share row is a display-stage composition ratio; absence is what the — in the raw row states. | |
Maintain confidentiality of records relating to clients' treatment. | —0 |
Prepare and maintain all required treatment records and reports. | —0 |
Act as client advocates to coordinate required services or to resolve emergency problems in crisis situations. | —0 |
Develop and implement treatment plans based on clinical experience and knowledge. | —0 |
Evaluate clients' physical or mental condition, based on review of client information. | —0 |
Meet with families, probation officers, police, or other interested parties to exchange necessary information during the treatment process. | —0 |
Counsel family members to assist them in understanding, dealing with, or supporting clients or patients. | —0 |
Evaluate the effectiveness of counseling programs on clients' progress in resolving identified problems and moving towards defined objectives. | —0 |
Modify treatment activities or approaches as needed to comply with changes in clients' status. | —0 |
Learn about new developments in counseling by reading professional literature, attending courses and seminars, or establishing and maintaining contact with other social service agencies. | —0 |
Discuss with individual patients their plans for life after leaving therapy. | —0 |
Gather information about community mental health needs or resources that could be used in conjunction with therapy. | —0 |
Monitor clients' use of medications. | —0 |
Fill out and maintain client-related paperwork, including federal- and state-mandated forms, client diagnostic records, and progress notes. | —0 |
Perform crisis interventions with clients. | —0 |
Plan or conduct programs to prevent substance abuse or improve community health or counseling services. | —0 |
Supervise other counselors, social service staff, assistants, or graduate students. | —0 |
Coordinate or direct employee workshops, courses, or training about mental health issues. | —0 |
Values in this tab are predicted labels, not observations. Eloundou et al. (2023) published two rating regimes — human raters and GPT-4 — and the β shown here is derived from the GPT-4 rater basis alone; the same task can take a different value under the other regime. The unit and the meaning differ from the observed shares (%) in the other tabs, so do not place them on the same axis.
| Task (O*NET 27.2) | βE1 + 0.5 × E2 |
|---|---|
Prepare and maintain all required treatment records and reports.O*NET Task ID 1594 | 1.0 |
Fill out and maintain client-related paperwork, including federal- and state-mandated forms, client diagnostic records, and progress notes.O*NET Task ID 18484 | 1.0 |
Collect information about clients through interviews, observation, or tests.O*NET Task ID 1596 | 0.5 |
Develop and implement treatment plans based on clinical experience and knowledge.O*NET Task ID 1598 | 0.5 |
Evaluate clients' physical or mental condition, based on review of client information.O*NET Task ID 1600 | 0.5 |
Refer patients, clients, or family members to community resources or to specialists as necessary.O*NET Task ID 1602 | 0.5 |
Evaluate the effectiveness of counseling programs on clients' progress in resolving identified problems and moving towards defined objectives.O*NET Task ID 1604 | 0.5 |
Learn about new developments in counseling by reading professional literature, attending courses and seminars, or establishing and maintaining contact with other social service agencies.O*NET Task ID 1607 | 0.5 |
Gather information about community mental health needs or resources that could be used in conjunction with therapy.O*NET Task ID 1609 | 0.5 |
Plan or conduct programs to prevent substance abuse or improve community health or counseling services.O*NET Task ID 1612 | 0.5 |
Coordinate or direct employee workshops, courses, or training about mental health issues.O*NET Task ID 18486 | 0.5 |
Collaborate with mental health professionals and other staff members to perform clinical assessments or develop treatment plans.O*NET Task ID 23909 | 0.5 |
Maintain confidentiality of records relating to clients' treatment.O*NET Task ID 1591 | 0.0 |
Encourage clients to express their feelings and discuss what is happening in their lives, helping them to develop insight into themselves or their relationships.O*NET Task ID 1592 | 0.0 |
Guide clients in the development of skills or strategies for dealing with their problems.O*NET Task ID 1593 | 0.0 |
Counsel clients or patients, individually or in group sessions, to assist in overcoming dependencies, adjusting to life, or making changes.O*NET Task ID 1595 | 0.0 |
Act as client advocates to coordinate required services or to resolve emergency problems in crisis situations.O*NET Task ID 1597 | 0.0 |
Meet with families, probation officers, police, or other interested parties to exchange necessary information during the treatment process.O*NET Task ID 1601 | 0.0 |
Counsel family members to assist them in understanding, dealing with, or supporting clients or patients.O*NET Task ID 1603 | 0.0 |
Plan, organize, or lead structured programs of counseling, work, study, recreation, or social activities for clients.O*NET Task ID 1605 | 0.0 |
Modify treatment activities or approaches as needed to comply with changes in clients' status.O*NET Task ID 1606 | 0.0 |
Discuss with individual patients their plans for life after leaving therapy.O*NET Task ID 1608 | 0.0 |
Monitor clients' use of medications.O*NET Task ID 1610 | 0.0 |
Assess patients for risk of suicide attempts.O*NET Task ID 18483 | 0.0 |
Supervise other counselors, social service staff, assistants, or graduate students.O*NET Task ID 18485 | 0.0 |
Perform crisis interventions with clients.O*NET Task ID 20402 | 0.0 |
Perform crisis interventions to help ensure the safety of the patients and others.O*NET Task ID 23908 | 0.0 |
β = E1 + 0.5 × E2 · E1 = tasks where direct LLM access alone cuts time by at least 50%, E2 = tasks where software built on top of an LLM cuts time by at least 50%. Values take only 0 / 0.5 / 1.0.
Data sources & licenses — O*NET®, Anthropic Economic Index, Eloundou et al. (2023): see full notices on the Credits page
All O*NET 31.0 task statements (27)
All O*NET 31.0 task statements for this occupation (English, as published; task type core or supplemental). Exposure values are not listed here; they are in the table above, next to each task statement as worded in the O*NET version each source used.
| Task (O*NET 31.0) | Type |
|---|---|
| Maintain confidentiality of records relating to clients' treatment. | Core |
| Encourage clients to express their feelings and discuss what is happening in their lives, helping them to develop insight into themselves or their relationships. | Core |
| Guide clients in the development of skills or strategies for dealing with their problems. | Core |
| Prepare and maintain all required treatment records and reports. | Core |
| Counsel clients or patients, individually or in group sessions, to assist in overcoming dependencies, adjusting to life, or making changes. | Core |
| Collect information about clients through interviews, observation, or tests. | Core |
| Act as client advocates to coordinate required services or to resolve emergency problems in crisis situations. | Core |
| Develop and implement treatment plans based on clinical experience and knowledge. | Core |
| Evaluate clients' physical or mental condition, based on review of client information. | Core |
| Meet with families, probation officers, police, or other interested parties to exchange necessary information during the treatment process. | Core |
| Refer patients, clients, or family members to community resources or to specialists as necessary. | Core |
| Counsel family members to assist them in understanding, dealing with, or supporting clients or patients. | Core |
| Evaluate the effectiveness of counseling programs on clients' progress in resolving identified problems and moving towards defined objectives. | Core |
| Plan, organize, or lead structured programs of counseling, work, study, recreation, or social activities for clients. | Core |
| Modify treatment activities or approaches as needed to comply with changes in clients' status. | Core |
| Learn about new developments in counseling by reading professional literature, attending courses and seminars, or establishing and maintaining contact with other social service agencies. | Core |
| Discuss with individual patients their plans for life after leaving therapy. | Core |
| Gather information about community mental health needs or resources that could be used in conjunction with therapy. | Core |
| Monitor clients' use of medications. | Core |
| Plan or conduct programs to prevent substance abuse or improve community health or counseling services. | Core |
| Assess patients for risk of suicide attempts. | Core |
| Fill out and maintain client-related paperwork, including federal- and state-mandated forms, client diagnostic records, and progress notes. | Core |
| Supervise other counselors, social service staff, assistants, or graduate students. | Core |
| Coordinate or direct employee workshops, courses, or training about mental health issues. | Core |
| Perform crisis interventions with clients. | Core |
| Perform crisis interventions to help ensure the safety of the patients and others. | Core |
| Collaborate with mental health professionals and other staff members to perform clinical assessments or develop treatment plans. | Core |
0.00/ 3· Robot exposure index
Scale, basis and source
Each physical task is graded 0–3 by the setting in which robots that have been deployed, sold or demonstrated could do it (0 none · 1 purpose-built robot settings such as a fenced machine cell or a bottling line · 2 structured facilities such as a hospital pharmacy or a container port · 3 unstructured settings such as a private home or a construction site), and the grades are averaged by share of working time
Physical tasks among this occupation's O*NET 29.3 tasks
Anthropic estimated the grades and time shares with Claude Opus 5 using web search, as of 2026.
The robot exposure index is a different measure from the AI exposure figures on this site and cannot be added to or compared with them. It does not measure actual adoption or cost, and 0 also covers occupations with no physical tasks.
Tier of each physical task
None of this occupation's O*NET 29.3 tasks is classified as a physical task.
Occupation information
Employment outlook (BLS)
The BLS Employment Projections table has no row for SOC 21-1014.
Korea classification links (KSCO)
Links from the current release of the Korea Occupation Direct Crosswalk v1.1, made by AI Changing Work. Relation values are read from the O*NET-SOC occupation side.
| KSCO code | KSCO title | Relation | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25330 | 상담 전문가 | This occupation is narrower | confirmed |
Relation and status definitions(kr-direct v1.1)
ILO occupational description
AI Changing Work links the ISCO-08 unit groups below to this occupation by applying the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics crosswalks (2018 SOC to 2010 SOC, 2010 SOC to ISCO-08) as published, without case-by-case selection; each link may be whole or partial.
- ISCO-08 2635Social Work and Counselling Professionals
The definition, tasks and examples below are the ILO's description of that unit group, not of this occupation.
Social work and counselling professionals provide advice and guidance to individuals, families, groups, communities and organizations in response to social and personal difficulties. They assist clients to develop skills and access resources and support services needed to respond to issues arising from unemployment, poverty, disability, addiction, criminal and delinquent behaviour, and marital and other problems.
Tasks
- (a) interviewing clients individually, in families, or in groups, to assess their situation and problems and determine the types of services required;
- (b) analysing the client's situation and presenting alternative approaches to resolving problems;
- (c) compiling case records or reports for courts and other legal proceedings;
- (d) providing counselling, therapy and mediation services and facilitating group sessions to assist clients to develop skills and insights needed to deal with and resolve their social and personal problems;
- (e) planning and implementing programmes of assistance for clients including crisis intervention and referral to agencies that provide financial assistance, legal aid, housing, medical treatment and other services;
- (f) investigating cases of abuse or neglect and taking action to protect children and other at risk persons;
- (g) working with offenders during and after sentence, to help them to integrate into the community and to change attitudes and behaviour in order to reduce further offending;
- (h) providing advice to prison governors and to probation and parole review boards that helps determine whether, and under what conditions, an offender should be incarcerated, released from prison or undergo alternative correctional measures;
- (i) acting as advocates for client groups in the community and lobbying for solutions to problems affecting them;
- (j) developing prevention and intervention programmes to meet community needs;
- (k) maintaining contact with other social service agencies, educational institutions and health care providers involved with clients to provide information and obtain feedback on clients' overall situation and progress.
Example occupations
Addictions counsellor · Bereavement counsellor · Child and youth counsellor · District social welfare officer · Family counsellor · Marriage counsellor · Parole officer · Probation officer · Sexual assault counsellor · Social worker · Women’s welfare organizer
Sources: ILO ISCO-08 — details: Credits
ESCO occupational vocabulary
Each entry below is matched to this occupation in the published ESCO-O*NET Crosswalk (version 1, 2022). The match types are that crosswalk's; the wording is AI Changing Work's.
- mental health social workerESCO 2635.3.17Same scope
Mental health social workers assist and provide counselling to people with mental, emotional, or substance abuse problems. They focus on providing personalised support to cases and monitor the recovery process of their clients by providing therapy, crisis intervention, client advocacy and education. Mental health social workers may contribute to mental health services improvement and mental health outcomes for citizens.
- drug and alcohol addiction counsellorESCO 2635.1.2This occupation is broader
Drug and alcohol addiction counsellors provide assistance and counselling to individuals and families dealing with drug and alcohol addictions, monitoring their progress, advocating for them, performing crisis interventions and group therapy. They also assist the persons with the consequences of their addictions which can be unemployment, physical or mental disorders and poverty. Drug and alcohol addiction counsellors may also prepare educational programs for high-risk populations.
- marriage counsellorESCO 2635.1.4This occupation is broader
Marriage counsellors support and guide couples and families that are going through crises such as depression, substance abuse and relationship problems. They help improving their communication by providing group or individual therapy.
- substance misuse workerESCO 2635.3.24This occupation is broader
Substance misuse workers provide assistance and counselling to people with substance abuse problems. They monitor their progress, advocate for them, and performe crisis interventions and group therapy. They also assist patients dealing with the consequences of tobacco, alcohol or recreational drugs abuse, which can be problematics as unemployment, physical or mental disorders and poverty.
- clinical social workerESCO 2635.3.3Overlapping, not the same
Clinical social workers provide therapy, counselling, and intervention services to clients. They treat clients with personal struggles, namely mental illness, addiction, and abuse, advocating for them and helping them gain access to the necessary resources. They also focus on the impact of medical and public health issues within social aspects.
- social counsellorESCO 2635.1Overlapping, not the same
Social counsellors provide support and guidance to individuals in the social work area, to help them solve specific problems in their personal life. It involves addressing personal and relationship issues, dealing with inner conflicts, crisis moments such as depression and addiction, in an attempt to empower individuals to achieve change and improve their life quality.
Source: European Commission, DG EMPL — ESCO API 2026-08-08 (bridge v1.2.1)
License: CC BY 4.0 (EU Reuse Notice)
ESCO reuse terms and the modification notice are in Credits.
France classification links (ROME)
AI Changing Work's links between this occupation and ROME 4.0 job profiles, judged with AI models. Relations are read from this occupation's side. Links marked “provisional” were adopted on the judgments of two judges from the same model family (Claude) alone, or by an operator rule applied to their judgments, so they rest on weaker evidence than confirmed links.
| ROME code | ROME title (French) | Relation |
|---|---|---|
| K1104 | Psychologue | Overlapping, not the sameprovisional |
| K1106 | Sophrologue | Related, not a match |
| K1103 | Conseiller / Conseillère en développement personnel | Related, not a matchprovisional |
Source: France Travail — Répertoire Opérationnel des Métiers et des Emplois (ROME 4.0), version 61, last updated 15 June 2026 (https://www.data.gouv.fr/datasets/repertoire-operationnel-des-metiers-et-des-emplois-rome). Licence Ouverte 2.0.
ROME codes and titles are reproduced unchanged; the links to O*NET-SOC occupations are AI Changing Work's own judgment and are not a France Travail correspondence.
(AI Changing Work link release: fr-direct v1)
Spain classification links (CNO-11)
AI Changing Work's links between this occupation and CNO-11 occupations, judged with AI models. Relations are read from this occupation's side.
| CNO-11 code | CNO-11 title (Spanish) | Relation |
|---|---|---|
| 2824 | Profesionales del trabajo y la educación social | Related, not a match |
| 2823 | Psicólogos | Related, not a matchprovisional |
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE), National Classification of Occupations 2011 (CNO-11, Royal Decree 1591/2010) — www.ine.es · Licensed CC BY 4.0. CNO-11 codes and Spanish titles are reproduced unchanged; the links to O*NET occupations are AI Changing Work's own judgment and are not an INE correspondence.
(AI Changing Work link release: es-direct v1)
Germany classification links (KldB)
AI Changing Work's links between this occupation and KldB occupations, judged with AI models. Relations are read from this occupation's side.
| KldB code | KldB title (German) | Relation |
|---|---|---|
| 83154 | Berufe in der Sozial-, Erziehungs- und Suchtberatung - hoch komplexe Tätigkeiten | Overlapping, not the same |
| 81634 | Berufe in der nicht ärztlichen Psychotherapie - hoch komplexe Tätigkeiten | Related, not a match |
Source: © Statistik der Bundesagentur für Arbeit — Klassifikation der Berufe 2010 – überarbeitete Fassung 2020, https://statistik.arbeitsagentur.de. KldB codes and titles are reproduced unchanged; the links to O*NET occupations are AI Changing Work's own mapping (eigene Zuordnung) and are not a Bundesagentur für Arbeit correspondence.
(AI Changing Work link release: de-direct v1)
Japan classification links (JSCO)
AI Changing Work's links between this occupation and JSCO occupations, judged with AI models. Relations are read from this occupation's side.
| JSCO code | JSCO title (Japanese) | Relation |
|---|---|---|
| 243 | カウンセラー(医療・福祉施設を除く) | Overlapping, not the same |
| 159 | 他に分類されない保健医療従事者 | Related, not a match |
| 169 | その他の社会福祉専門職業従事者 | Related, not a match |
Source: Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC), Japan Standard Occupational Classification (Dec. 2009, MIC Notification No. 555). JSCO codes and Japanese titles are reproduced unchanged; the links to O*NET occupations are AI Changing Work's own judgment and are not a MIC correspondence.
(AI Changing Work link release: jp-direct v1)
Sources, licenses and AI Changing Work's modification and translation notices for this page: Credits & sources