e wrapper

Abstract

The advancement of digital technologies particularly in the domain of mobile health (mHealth) holds great promise in the promotion of health behavior. However, keeping users engaged remains a central challenge. This paper proposes a novel approach to address this issue by supplementing existing and future mHealth applications with an engagement wrapper - a collection of engagement strategies integrated into a single, coherent model. The engagement wrapper is operationalized within the format of an ambient display on the lock screen of mobile devices.

National Institutes of Health Support of Digital Health Behavior Research

“…While there are many advantages of digital technologies for behavioral research and for improving health, there a number of challenges to address. Sustained engagement with health apps continues to be a problem that requires more research on engagement (Wagner et al, 2017). Adoption of these technologies are not uniform across subgroups and broadband access remains unevenly distributed (Pew Research Center, 2018c).…”

User-engagement in digital health applications: a scoping review

“…Regarding users, some authors also suggest using online peer communities to engage users as they provide resources for sharing experiences and achieving better outcomes. These digital health communities may include discussion forums, online support groups, and social networks for patients (32,34,36,42,44,62,65,66). This is believed to be particularly important for young people and marginalized populations as it provides an opportunity to address crucial behavior change issues (66) and allows social interaction, feeling supported, and understood by the community (28, 33, 63) to enhance participants' engagement in the program and foster their motivation (32), mentioned as a key to engaging users (21,34,37,41).…”

“…providing social support such as the collective discussion that we found in this review, iiii. becoming aware of the effect of their environment on their behavior and being able to act on it (32,34,36,42,44,62,65,66), v. nding external human resources that improve the effectiveness of apps (73) in the healthcare system through adapted organizations.…”

“…shown that low frequency of use can be just as effective as higher frequency ( 21) and an increase in usage time can signal low ease of use rather than attractive content (29). In the context of mobile health, engagement behavior is frequently assessed through passive measures of application usage (34), which fail to provide a comprehensive understanding of engagement with a digital platform (28). Additionally, it is important to focus on "effective engagement" rather than simply "increased engagement" (35).…”

Commentary: Pediatric Digital Health Supported by the National Institutes of Health

“…Although health apps are the most frequently downloaded category of apps (Krebs & Duncan, 2015), use typically dissipates rapidly unless engagement is carefully considered (Wagner et al, 2017). To promote "stickiness," user-centered design approaches are important for mhealth and other digital technologies.…”