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Cited by 583Mobile Health and mHealth ApplicationsUsability and User Interface DesignDigital Mental Health Interventions

A user-centered model for designing consumer mobile health (mHealth) applications (apps)

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Schnall, Rebecca, Rojas, Marlene, Bakken, Suzanne, Brown, William, Carballo-Dieguez, Alex, Carry, Monique, Gelaude, Deborah, Mosley, Jocelyn Patterson +1 more·2016·Journal of Biomedical Informatics
DOI 10.1016/j.jbi.2016.02.002PMC PMC4837063
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Abstract

Background Mobile technologies are a useful platform for the delivery of health behavior interventions. Yet little work has been done to create a rigorous and standardized process for the design of mobile health (mHealth) apps. This project sought to explore the use of the Information Systems Research (ISR) framework as guide for the design of mHealth apps.Methods Our work was guided by the ISR framework which is comprised of 3 cycles: Relevance, Rigor and Design. In the Relevance cycle, we conducted 5 focus groups with 33 targeted end-users. In the Rigor cycle, we performed a review to identify technology-based interventions for meeting the health prevention needs of our target population. In the Design Cycle, we employed usability evaluation methods to iteratively develop and refine mock-ups for a mHealth app.Results Through an iterative process, we identified barriers and facilitators to the use of mHealth technology for HIV prevention for high-risk MSM, developed 'use cases' and identified relevant functional content and features for inclusion in a design document to guide future app development. Findings from our work support the use of the ISR framework as a guide for designing future mHealth apps.Discussion Results from this work provide detailed descriptions of the user-centered design and system development and have heuristic value for those venturing into the area of technology-based intervention work. Findings from this study support the use of the ISR framework as a guide for future mHealth app development.Conclusion Use of the ISR framework is a potentially useful approach for the design of a mobile app that incorporates end-users' design preferences.

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  • Few frameworks allow for a holistic approach to mHealth app design in developing and under-resourced contexts.

    “Currently, few frameworks allow for this holistic approach to mHealth app design in developing and under-resourced contexts. While frameworks are available for the design of mHealth apps [9, 14, 15], few are formulated for a developing context.”

    From A user-centred design framework for mHealth (2020) · cites this paper as [9]

    The Objective and Discussion > Guidelines for Future Mobile App Development (pages not provided) describe a holistic mHealth design approach as relatively novel, supporting the general point that such approaches are limited. The paper does not assess how many frameworks are suited to developing or under-resourced contexts; its app-development example concerns HIV prevention for high-risk men who have sex with men. (LLM, conf=0.84)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • mHealth apps are particularly effective when created through user-centered design (UCD).

    “and are particularly effective when created through user-centered design (UCD) [19-22].”

    From Co-Designing the MOSAIC mHealth App With Breast Cancer Survivors: User-Centered Design Approach (2024) · cites this paper as [21]

    The Discussion (‘Inclusion of End-Users in App Design’; page not provided) says that starting with users’ needs is critical to developing effective mHealth tools. It reports improved prototype usability through iterative user-centered design, but does not establish that UCD-created apps are particularly effective at achieving health outcomes. (LLM, conf=0.86)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • As UCD sessions progress, UX designers bring simple prototype sketches to the team of users and content experts for continued evaluation, refinement, and further iteration.

    “As the sessions progress, the UX designers bring simple prototype sketches to the team of users and content experts for continued evaluation, refinement, and further iteration [19,21,24].”

    From Co-Designing the MOSAIC mHealth App With Breast Cancer Survivors: User-Centered Design Approach (2024) · cites this paper as [21]

    The Methods sections on the Develop/Build and Evaluate cycles describe low-fidelity mock-ups that were tested by end users and usability experts, revised, and tested again. But the paper says participants made the initial sketches and the study team created mock-ups after the design sessions; it does not describe UX designers bringing sketches to a team of users and content experts as sessions progress. Page numbers were not available in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.84)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • The ISR framework uses iterative, user-centred design processes to create artefacts, usually technological.

    “The framework uses iterative, user-centred design processes to create artefacts, usually technological [9].”

    From A user-centred design framework for mHealth (2020) · cites this paper as [9]

  • The design approach described in the paper addresses the cost and time concerns associated with the application of the ISR framework highlighted by Schnall et al. [9].

    “Given the above considerations, we believe that the design approach described in this paper addresses the cost and time concerns associated with the application of the ISR framework highlighted by Schnall et al. [9].”

    From A user-centred design framework for mHealth (2020) · cites this paper as [9]

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Research works printed but not linked: 1

  1. [6]Kumar S Nilsen WJ Abernethy A Mobile health technology evaluation: the mHealth evidence workshop Am J Prev Med 2013 45 2 228 36 doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2013.03.017 23867031 PMC3803146 · DOI · Paper page

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Authors
Schnall, R., Rojas, M., Bakken, S., Brown, W., Carballo-Dieguez, A., Carry, M., Gelaude, D., Mosley, J. P., & Travers, J.
Affiliations
  • Columbia University (US)
  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (US)
Corresponding author
Schnall, Rebecca
ORCID
Venue
Journal of Biomedical Informatics
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2016-04
Volume
60
Pages
243-251
ISSN
1532-0464 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1016/j.jbi.2016.02.002
PMC
PMC4837063
OpenAlex
W2300935853
Cited by
583
References
39
Citations by year
2026: 49 · 2025: 56 · 2024: 54 · 2023: 65 · 2022: 69 · 2021: 91 · 2020: 76 · 2019: 50 · 2018: 47 · 2017: 20 · 2016: 5 · 2015: 1
FWCI
75.64
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Journal of Biomedical Informatics (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • Columbia University School of Nursing
  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Mobile Health and mHealth Applications
  • Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Human-Computer Interaction › Usability and User Interface Design
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Digital Mental Health Interventions
Keywords
mobile health apps, user-centered design, HIV prevention, men who have sex with men, health behavior interventions, usability evaluation, mock-ups, barriers and facilitators, technology-based interventions, end-user involvement
MeSH terms
Adult, Algorithms, Communicable Disease Control, Humans, Information Systems, Male, Medical Informatics, Software Design, User-Computer Interface, HIV Infections, Focus Groups, Telemedicine, Homosexuality, Male, Cell Phone, Young Adult, Mobile Applications

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