Dataset Information

The impact of celebrity influence and national media coverage on users of an alcohol reduction app: a natural experiment.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Smartphone apps are increasingly used for health-related behaviour change and people discover apps through different sources. However, it is unclear whether users differ by mode of app discovery. Drink Less is an alcohol reduction app that received national media coverage in the UK caused by celebrity influence (a male TV and radio national broadcaster, aged 51). Our aim was to compare users who discovered the app before and after this coverage.

Methods

A natural experiment assessing the impact of media coverage of Drink Less on users' socio-demographic and drinking characteristics, app engagement levels, and extent of alcohol reduction. The study period was from 17th May 2017 to 23rd January 2019, with media coverage starting on 21st August 2018. Users were 18?years or over, based in the UK and interested in drinking less. Interrupted time series analyses using Generalised Additive Mixed Models were conducted for each outcome variable aggregated at the weekly level.

Results

In 66?weeks prior to the media coverage, 8617 users downloaded the app and 18,959 in 23?weeks afterwards. There was a significant step-level increase in users' mean age (B?=?8.17, p ConclusionsCelebrity influence leading to national media coverage in the UK of the Drink Less app was associated with more people downloading the app who were male, older and engaged with the app; and did not appear to impact employment inequality.

SUBMITTER: Garnett C

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7789329 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

The impact of celebrity influence and national media coverage on users of an alcohol reduction app: a natural experiment.

Garnett Claire C Perski Olga O Beard Emma E Michie Susan S West Robert R Brown Jamie J

BMC public health 20210106 1

<h4>Background</h4>Smartphone apps are increasingly used for health-related behaviour change and people discover apps through different sources. However, it is unclear whether users differ by mode of app discovery. Drink Less is an alcohol reduction app that received national media coverage in the UK caused by celebrity influence (a male TV and radio national broadcaster, aged 51). Our aim was to compare users who discovered the app before and after this coverage.<h4>Methods</h4>A natural experi ...[more]

PMID: 33407283

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundUnderstanding how users engage with electronic screening and brief intervention (eSBI) is a critical research objective to improve effectiveness of app-based interventions to reduce harmful alcohol consumption. Although quantitative measures of engagement provide a strong indicator of how the user engages with an app at the group level, they do not elucidate finer-grained details of how apps function from an individual, experiential perspective and why, or how, users engage with an intervention in a particular manner.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to (1) understand why and how participants engaged with the BRANCH app, (2) explore facilitators and barriers to engagement with app features, (3) explore how the BRANCH app impacted drinking behavior, (4) use these data to identify typologies of users of the BRANCH app in terms of engagement behaviors, and (5) identify future eSBI app design implications.MethodsIn total, 20 one-to-one semistructured telephone interviews were conducted with participants recruited from a randomized controlled trial, which evaluated the effectiveness of engagement-promoting strategies in the BRANCH app targeting harmful drinking in young adults (aged 18-30 years). The topic guide explored users' current engagement levels with existing health promotion apps, their views toward the effectiveness of such apps, and what they liked and disliked about BRANCH, specifically focusing on how they engaged with the app. Framework analysis was used to develop typologies of user engagement.ResultsThe study identified 3 typologies of engagers. Trackers were defined by their motivations to use health-tracking apps to monitor and understand quantified self-data. They did not have intentions necessarily to cut down and predominantly used only the drinking diary. Cut-downers were motivated to use the app because they wanted to reduce their alcohol consumption Unlike Trackers, they did not use a range of different health apps daily, but saw the BRANCH app as an opportunity to test out a different method of trying to cut down their alcohol use. This typology used more features than Trackers, such as the goal setting function. Noncommitters were characterized as a group of users who were initially enthusiastic about using the app; however, this enthusiasm quickly waned and they gained no benefit from it.ConclusionsThis was the first study to identify typologies of user engagement with eSBI apps. Although in need of replication, it provides a first step in understanding independent categories of eSBI users, who may benefit from apps tailored to a user's typology or motivation. It also provides new evidence to suggest that apps may be used more effectively as a tool to raise awareness of drinking, instead of reducing alcohol use, and be a step in the care pathway, identifying at-risk individuals and signposting them to more intensive treatment.Trial registrationInternational Standard Randomised Controlled Trial Number ISRCTN70980706; http://www.isrctn.com /ISRCTN70980706 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/73vfDXYEZ).

Dataset Information

The impact of celebrity influence and national media coverage on users of an alcohol reduction app: a natural experiment.

Background

Methods

Results

Publications

The impact of celebrity influence and national media coverage on users of an alcohol reduction app: a natural experiment.

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