Bluebeard, Curiosity, and Digital Saturation

Abstract Our relationship to ‘what can be known’ is changing with access to online search, AI, community information networks, and other digital tools. These resources may curtail our ability, willingness, or desire to stay with the ‘not‐yet‐known’ or keep an open, curious attitude. While this has implications for us all collectively, it also has a particular impact on the practice of psychotherapy. This paper looks at some of the hidden designs and dangers in searching for information and answers online – both for therapist and patient. As a ‘cautionary tale’ for the curious, Bluebeard offers multiple readings that may enrich and amplify our understanding of these contemporary developments. Just as the young bride is given the keys to every room in Bluebeard’s castle, our phones and computers may act as keys to all sorts of rooms, rooms that contain both treasures and horrors. Detailed clinical material brings some of these challenges to life.