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Using Mobile Devices to Deliver Lifestyle Interventions Targeting At-Risk High School Students: Protocol for a Participatory Design Study.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:Unhealthy lifestyle behaviors such as insufficient physical activity, unhealthy diet, smoking, and harmful use of alcohol tend to cluster (ie, individuals may be at risk from more than one lifestyle behavior that can be established in early childhood and adolescence and track into adulthood). Previous research has underlined the potential of lifestyle interventions delivered via mobile phones. However, there is a need for deepened knowledge on how to design mobile health (mHealth) interventions taking end user views into consideration in order to optimize the overall usability of such interventions. Adolescents are early adopters of technology and frequent users of mobile phones, yet research on interventions that use mobile devices to deliver multiple lifestyle behavior changes targeting at-risk high school students is lacking. OBJECTIVE:This protocol describes a participatory design study with the aim of developing an mHealth lifestyle behavior intervention to promote healthy lifestyles among high school students. METHODS:Through an iterative process using participatory design, user requirements are investigated in terms of technical features and content. The procedures around the design and development of the intervention, including heuristic evaluations, focus group interviews, and usability tests, are described. RESULTS:Recruitment started in May 2019. Data collection, analysis, and scientific reporting from heuristic evaluations and usability tests are expected to be completed in November 2019. Focus group interviews were being undertaken with high school students from October through December, and full results are expected to be published in Spring 2020. A planned clinical trial will commence in Summer 2020. The study was funded by a grant from the Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life, and Welfare. CONCLUSIONS:The study is expected to add knowledge on how to design an mHealth intervention taking end users' views into consideration in order to develop a novel, evidence-based, low-cost, and scalable intervention that high school students want to use in order to achieve a healthier lifestyle. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID):DERR1-10.2196/14588.

SUBMITTER: Mussener U

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6971512 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Using Mobile Devices to Deliver Lifestyle Interventions Targeting At-Risk High School Students: Protocol for a Participatory Design Study.

Müssener Ulrika U Löf Marie M Löf Marie M Bendtsen Preben P Bendtsen Marcus M

JMIR research protocols 20200106 1

<h4>Background</h4>Unhealthy lifestyle behaviors such as insufficient physical activity, unhealthy diet, smoking, and harmful use of alcohol tend to cluster (ie, individuals may be at risk from more than one lifestyle behavior that can be established in early childhood and adolescence and track into adulthood). Previous research has underlined the potential of lifestyle interventions delivered via mobile phones. However, there is a need for deepened knowledge on how to design mobile health (mHea ...[more]

PMID: 31904576

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Project description:BackgroundMobile electronic platforms provide exciting possibilities for health behavior promotion. For instance, they can promote smoking cessation, moderate alcohol consumption, healthy eating, and physical activity. Young adults in Sweden are proficient in the use of technology, having been exposed to computers, smartphones, and the internet from an early age. However, with the high availability of mobile health (mHealth) interventions of varying quality, it is critical to optimize the usability of mHealth interventions to ensure long-term use of these health promotion interventions.ObjectiveThis study aims to investigate the usability of an mHealth intervention (LIFE4YOUth) targeting health behaviors among high school students through heuristic evaluation and usability testing.MethodsA preliminary version of the LIFE4YOUth mHealth intervention, which was aimed at promoting healthy eating, physical activity, smoking cessation, and nonrisky drinking among high school students, was developed in early 2019. We completed a total of 15 heuristic evaluations and 5 usability tests to evaluate the usability of the mHealth intervention prototype to improve its functioning, content, and design.ResultsHeuristic evaluation from a total of 15 experts (10 employees and 5 university students, both women and men, aged 18-25 years) revealed that the major usability problems and the worst ratings, a total of 17 problems termed usability catastrophes, concerned shortcomings in displaying easy-to-understand information to the users or technical errors. The results of the usability testing including 5 high school students (both girls and boys, aged 15-18 years) showed that the design, quality, and quantity of content in the intervention may impact the users' level of engagement. Poor functionality was considered a major barrier to usability. Of the 5 participants, one rated the LIFE4YOUth intervention as poor, 2 rated as average, and 2 assessed it as good, according to the System Usability Scale.ConclusionsHigh school students have high expectations of digital products. If an mHealth intervention does not offer optimal functions, they may cease to use it. Optimizing the usability of mHealth interventions is a critical step in the development process. Heuristic evaluation and usability testing in this study provided valuable knowledge about the prototype from a user's perspective. The findings may lead to the development of similar interventions targeting the high school population.

Project description:BackgroundPeople with a low socioeconomic position (SEP) are less likely to benefit from eHealth interventions, exacerbating social health inequalities. Professionals developing eHealth interventions for this group face numerous challenges. A comprehensive guide to support these professionals in their work could mitigate these inequalities.ObjectiveWe aimed to develop a web-based guide to support professionals in the development, adaptation, evaluation, and implementation of eHealth interventions for people with a low SEP.MethodsThis study consisted of 2 phases. The first phase involved a secondary analysis of 2 previous qualitative and quantitative studies. In this phase, we synthesized insights from the previous studies to develop the guide's content and information structure. In the second phase, we used a participatory design process. This process included iterative development and evaluation of the guide's design with 11 professionals who had experience with both eHealth and the target group. We used test versions (prototypes) and think-aloud testing combined with semistructured interviews and a questionnaire to identify design requirements and develop and adapt the guide accordingly.ResultsThe secondary analysis resulted in a framework of recommendations for developing the guide, which was categorized under 5 themes: development, reach, adherence, evaluation, and implementation. The participatory design process resulted in 16 requirements on system, content, and service aspects for the design of the guide. For the system category, the guide was required to have an open navigation strategy leading to more specific information and short pages with visual elements. Content requirements included providing comprehensible information, scientific evidence, a user perspective, information on practical applications, and a personal and informal tone of voice. Service requirements involved improving suitability for different professionals, ensuring long-term viability, and a focus on implementation. Based on these requirements, we developed the final version of "the inclusive eHealth guide."ConclusionsThe inclusive eHealth guide provides a practical, user-centric tool for professionals aiming to develop, adapt, evaluate, and implement eHealth interventions for people with a low SEP, with the aim of reducing health disparities in this population. Future research should investigate its suitability for different end-user goals, its external validity, its applicability in specific contexts, and its real-world impact on social health inequality.

Project description:BACKGROUND:People living with chronic illnesses are an increasingly large group. Research indicates that care and self-management should not only focus on the illness and problem-oriented aspects of these individuals' lives but also support them in recognizing and leveraging their personal strengths in daily life. OBJECTIVE:This paper presents the design and developmental process of MyStrengths, a mobile health (mHealth) app designed to help its users (people with chronic conditions) both find and make use of their personal strengths in their daily lives. Through 4 consecutive phases, this paper presents participant- and researcher-driven activities, discussions regarding design, and development of both the MyStrengths app and its content. METHODS:During the 4 phases, we used a range of methods and activities, including (1) an idea-generating workshop aimed at creating ideas for strengths-supporting features with different stakeholders, including patients, caregivers, relatives, and designers (N=35); (2) research seminars with an international group of experts (N=6), in which the concept, theoretical background, and design ideas for the app were discussed; (3) a series of co-design workshops with people in the user group (N=22) aiming to create ideas for how to, in an engaging manner, design the app; and (4) in 4 developmental iterations, the app was evaluated by people in the user group (N=13). Content and strengths exercises were worked on and honed by the research team, the expert groups, and our internal editorial team during the entire developmental process. RESULTS:The first phase found a wide range of stakeholder requirements to, and ideas for, strengths-focused mHealth apps. From reviewing literature during the second phase, we found a dearth of research on personal strengths with respect to people living with chronic illnesses. Activities during the third phase creatively provided numerous ideas and suggestions for engaging and gameful ways to develop and design the MyStrengths app. The final phase saw the output from all the earlier phases come together. Through multiple increasingly complete iterations of user evaluations testing and developing, the final prototype of the MyStrengths app was created. CONCLUSIONS:Although research supports the use of strengths-focused mHealth tools to support people living with chronic illnesses, there is little guidance as to how these tools and their content should be designed. Through all activities, we found great support among participating users for strengths-focused apps, and we can consider such apps to be both appropriate and valuable. This paper illustrates how combining a range of user-, researcher-, literature-, and designer-based methods can contribute to creating mHealth tools to support people with chronic illnesses to find and use more of their own personal strengths.

Project description:BACKGROUND:A large provider of community health services (an NHS Trust in England) deployed Apple iPads to its front-line community-based healthcare clinicians (predominantly nurses) to enable them to increase responsiveness to patients' and their families' needs. We conducted a participatory formative evaluation of this iPad initiative among different users and the informatics teams implementing it, to establish how such initiatives can sustain adoption and achieve their stated benefits. METHODS:We used a participatory approach involving a partnership between study investigators and key decision-makers of the initiative to engage stakeholders in the study. Methods included focus groups and group discussion, meetings with key personnel and analysis of documents related to the initiative. Using a participatory technique, members of the organisation identified practical challenges to inform the on-going process of implementation and adoption in the Trust. RESULTS:Healthcare professionals identified many benefits associated with having iPads to support care delivery, including streamlined workflows and accessible information at the point-of-care in the community. However, challenges that interfered with implementation were also reported by both the team implementing the initiative (IT team) and early users. Challenges reported by IT team are: adopter clinicians' scepticism and suspicion; clinician non-compliance with training and operational guidance procedures; and managing adopter expectations. Challenges reported by users are: setting-up and maintaining the devices on a long-term basis; blurring of personal and professional boundaries; and disconnection from the IT team. Results show that these challenges could be overcome if there were more informal 'socialised' interactions between adopters and between adopters and the IT team. CONCLUSIONS:We suggest that similar initiatives require increased ongoing dialogue between different levels of stakeholder groups, in the form of socialised engagements, to avoid common misunderstandings and to promote the processes involved in co-constructing the initiative on a generally-agreed and sustainable basis.

Dataset Information

Using Mobile Devices to Deliver Lifestyle Interventions Targeting At-Risk High School Students: Protocol for a Participatory Design Study.

Publications

Using Mobile Devices to Deliver Lifestyle Interventions Targeting At-Risk High School Students: Protocol for a Participatory Design Study.

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