Cognitive Behavioral Mobile Applications: Clinical Studies, Marketplace Overview, and Research Agenda
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A previous study conducted in 2017 found only four publicly available ACT apps.
“While a previous study conducted in 2017 found only four publicly available ACT apps (Torous et al., 2017)”
From A systematic review and meta-analysis of self-guided online acceptance and commitment therapy as a transdiagnostic self-help intervention (2023) · cites this paper as Torous et al., 2017
ACT apps appear to be increasing in popularity over time and may eventually follow the trend of traditional CBT apps, of which there are hundreds, vastly outnumbering traditional CBT websites.
“ACT apps appear to be increasing in popularity over time and may eventually follow the trend of traditional CBT apps of which there are hundreds, vastly outnumber ing traditional CBT websites (Stawarz et al., 2019; Torous et al., 2017).”
From A systematic review and meta-analysis of self-guided online acceptance and commitment therapy as a transdiagnostic self-help intervention (2023) · cites this paper as Torous et al., 2017
A gap exists in which published research on online interventions does not reflect the online interventions that the public is using.
“a gap exists in which published research on online interventions does not reflect the online interventions that the public is using.”
From A systematic review and meta-analysis of self-guided online acceptance and commitment therapy as a transdiagnostic self-help intervention (2023) · cites this paper as Torous et al., 2017
An absence of professional oversight may heighten concerns of potential iatrogenic effects on well-being.
“However, an absence of professional oversight may heighten concerns of potential iatrogenic effects on well-being [31].”
From An Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Prototype Mobile Program for Individuals with a Visible Difference: Mixed Methods Feasibility Study (2022) · cites this paper as [31]
If such pseudo-CBT apps exist, it is likely that they will fail to assist users to manage anxiety and/or depression and may, therefore, lead consumers to believe that CBT is ineffective.
“If such pseudo-CBT apps exist, it is likely that they will fail to assist users to manage anxiety and/or depression and may, therefore, lead consumers to believe that CBT is ineffective [27].”
From Apps with maps-anxiety and depression mobile apps with evidence-based frameworks: Systematic search of major app stores (2020) · cites this paper as [27]
The research literature on mobile apps for mental health is still relatively new, with only a few RCTs published on cognitive behavioral apps, or ACT more specifically.
“The research literature on mobile apps for mental health is still relatively new, with only a few RCTs published on cognitive behavioral apps, or ACT more specifically (Torous et al., 2017).”
From Comparing in-the-moment skill coaching effects from tailored versus non-tailored acceptance and commitment therapy mobile apps in a non-clinical sample (2019) · cites this paper as Torous et al., 2017
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“If such pseudo-CBT apps exist, it is likely that they will fail to assist users to manage anxiety and/or depression and may, therefore, lead consumers to believe that CBT is ineffective [27].”
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“While a previous study conducted in 2017 found only four publicly available ACT apps (Torous et al., 2017), this has since increased to 11 publicly available ACT apps, as compared to only 9 publicly available ACT website interventions (ACTing with Technology SIG, 2021).”
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“Furthermore, beginning with end users and what they are able to get on their devices helps mend the discrepancy that exists between the research literature and commercial app marketplaces [11,38].”
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“Torous et al. (2017) describe a surprising and problematic gap: there are far more online/mobile app programs evaluated in research than what is readily available to the public.”
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“It is not unusual that after the gathering of evidence, the apps become unavailable in the marketplace [178,180,181].”
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InfluentialImproving wellbeing in patients undergoing dialysis: Can meditation help?
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BackgroundDigital and Mobile Health Technology in Collaborative Behavioral Health Care: Scoping Review
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“Although a large number of therapy-based apps exist in commercial marketplaces, there is a dearth of research evaluating these apps in clinical practice [76,77].”
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“Randomized controlled trials and reviews of apps for depression have reported significant reductions in depressive symptoms [16-22] and improvements in well-being [23].”
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“The research literature on mobile apps for mental health is still relatively new, with only a few RCTs published on cognitive behavioral apps, or ACT more specifically (Torous et al., 2017).”
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“Torous et al. [12] found that, of 500 apps classified as therapy interventions, less than 1 % had been empirically validated.”
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“Randomized, controlled clinical trials have demonstrated that these apps can alleviate symptoms of depression, anxiety, and other affective disorders [19, 23, 30, 74, 77].”
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“However, an absence of professional oversight may heighten concerns of potential iatrogenic effects on well-being [31].”
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“Smartphone apps or other digital tools could reduce the time and frequency of sessions by supplementing clinician effort with automated, validated support that can be used flexibly between sessions [10,11].”
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“This result confirms previous findings that many apps use CBT and ACT approaches (Huguet et al., 2016; Stawarz et al., 2018; Torous et al., 2017).”
The development of a mindfulness-based mobile application to learn emotional self-regulation.
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“…et al., 2004; Birney et al., 2016), much of the research has been limited to pilot studies, often conducted by the apps’ own developers rather than by independent researchers, and randomized clinical trials tend to be statistically underpowered and unreplicated (Anthes, 2016; Torous et al., 2017).”
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“Therefore, this study investigates the users’ cognitive changes using cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) (Beatty & Kahle, 1988; Torous et al., 2017; Wathieu, 2004), manifested in commitment.”
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“The efficiency of these applications has not been fully established, but the field does show potential for further exploration (Erten Uyumaz et al., 2021; Torous et al., 2017).”
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“In 2015, a total of 447 apps related to cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) were found available in any App Store [10].”
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“Similar to the intervention tested in this study, there are a vast and growing number of mental health mobile apps that may be based on evidence-based treatments, but have had little to no direct evaluation in their specific, low-intensity format (Koh et al., 2022; Torous et al., 2017).”
Self-citationLinking mHealth Engagement to Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Through Perceived Health Competence
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“Consequently, there is increasing recognition of the need to move beyond descriptive indicators of mHealth use and to examine the psychological mechanisms that may link technology engagement to mental health outcomes [6,7].”
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- Authors
- Torous, J., Levin, M. E., Ahern, D. K., & Oser, M. L.
- Affiliations
- Brigham and Women's Hospital (US)
- Utah State University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Oser, Megan L.
- Venue
- Cognitive and Behavioral Practice
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2017-05
- Volume
- 24
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 215-225
- ISSN
- 1077-7229 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2430998563
- Cited by
- 73
- References
- 43
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 6 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 10 · 2017: 11 · 2016: 1
- FWCI
- 16.44
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Cognitive and Behavioral Practice (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Digital Mental Health Interventions
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Mobile Health and mHealth Applications
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Mindfulness and Compassion Interventions
- Keywords
- cognitive behavioral therapy, mobile health, mobile application, digital mental health interventions, dialectical behavior therapy, behavioral activation, acceptance and commitment therapy, app store analysis, feasibility and efficacy
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