Mental health apps make the grade

[Sunday21]

http://www.ldsliving.com/BYU-Research-Mental-Health-Apps-Are-a-Cheap-Effective-Self-Help-Tool/s/87112

Recent and emerging research has helped to demonstrate that health-related apps can facilitate behavior changes. One study found that DBT Coach, a software app for a mobile phone, decreased users’ depression and general distress by providing coaching against maladaptive behavior and improving adaptive coping behaviors [21]. Another study reported that users of the Mobilyze app showed considerable improvement in self-reported depressive symptoms and interview measures of depressive symptoms. Mobilyze users also had decreased comorbid anxiety symptoms and became less likely to meet criteria for major depressive disorder diagnosis [14]. Additional mental and emotional self-help apps, including Get Happy Program [26], CopeSmart [27], Mobile Type, and Mobile Stress Management [9], have also shown significant potential for improving mental and emotional health. This study helps to move this body of research forward by identifying at least some of the mechanisms by which these changes occur. Findings from this study may lead to an increase in the commitment to address health behavior theory constructs to influence mental and emotional health outcomes.

Edited December 3, 2017 by Sunday21

[dahlia]

I audit human subjects research at a Big 10 university. We frequently attend webinars on new trends in research; this is one of them. An on-going problem for IRBs (the boards that approve the research), however, is how do you verify who has signed the consent and who is putting in the data when using mobile devices? This is in addition to concerns re confidentiality of any info input into a mobile device. This all gives IRBs some headaches, but doesn't seem to be halting research in this area.