Parenting Journal · Volume 3 · Issue 1 · Licensed source edition
Children and adolescents‘ views on artificial intelligence in pediatric healthcare: a qualitative focus group study
Originally published 2026-06-13 · BMC Pediatrics
BMC · DOI 10.1186/s12887-026-07121-w ↗
AI / system type
Mixed pediatric AI scenarios / youth perspectives
Child-facing evidenceExamines children or child-focused systems. Transfer to everyday family life must be assessed separately.
The AI connection
Focus groups considered AI applications for development assessment and chronic-condition support.
Why this reading matters
Provides direct, age-specific evidence about minors’ preferences and expectations for transparent, participatory AI use.
Editorial reading guide · Respect
What do children want adults to respect when AI is used in their healthcare?
The study treats minors as contributors to AI decisions rather than merely subjects of parental or clinical permission.
Study context
Fifty-eight participants in 18 focus groups in Germany
Age / stage: Children and adolescents aged 8–17 years
Read with three questions
- Which concerns did young participants raise about data, misdiagnoses and human care?
- What did they want explained about how AI works?
- How do scenario-based views differ from experience with an actual system?
Keep the limits in view
The study was qualitative and context-specific. Hypothetical scenarios and selected hospital/school recruitment do not establish population prevalence, actual adoption or clinical effectiveness.
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Original authorship, publication date, journal and DOI are preserved. This issue’s TRICK placement and reading questions are editorial additions, not claims made by the original authors.
Lisa Reinhart; Janna-Lina Kerth; Anne C. Bischops; Maurus Hagemeister; Lisa Krassuski; Ertan Mayatepek; Thomas Meissner (2026). Children and adolescents‘ views on artificial intelligence in pediatric healthcare: a qualitative focus group study BMC Pediatrics. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12887-026-07121-w
Permissions checked against the saved article notice; repository publication notices screened 2026-11-04. This is not a new peer-review decision. The source authors and publishers are not represented as endorsing this issue.