AI-Driven Public Relations and Relational Outcomes in Health Communication: Public Trust and Engagement in India and Indonesia

Abstract

Artificial intelligence has increasingly transformed health communication by expanding the speed, scale, and personalization of institutional messaging. However, its strategic value cannot be understood solely in technical terms. This study examines how AI-driven public relations influences relational outcomes in health communication, with particular attention to public trust and public engagement in India and Indonesia. Using a quantitative design, data were collected from 320 respondents who had prior exposure to AI-supported health communication through digital platforms. The proposed model was tested using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling. The findings show that AI-driven public relations has a positive and significant effect on public trust and public engagement. Public trust also has a positive and significant effect on public engagement and mediates the relationship between AI-driven public relations and public engagement. These results suggest that the effectiveness of AI in health communication depends not only on communicative efficiency, but also on whether AI-supported interaction is perceived as credible, responsive, and institutionally reliable. By situating the analysis in two developing-country contexts, this study extends the relational perspective of public relations into AI-mediated health communication and highlights trust as a key mechanism through which technological communication becomes meaningfully engaging. The study also offers practical implications for health institutions seeking to integrate AI into communication strategies without weakening public confidence or relational quality.