Navigating the App-Wilderness: Learn to Find the Best App or Start to Design One Yourself:Pre-Conference Session

In this workshop you will learn how to evaluate existing apps on their theoretical basis, their usability and their persuasiveness to keep users engaged. We will provide hands-on experience in evaluating and selecting the right app for the job; give examples of high quality and lower quality apps to improve e.g. self-compassion and positive emotions; and give you the tools to apply this to your own field of interest

Positieve technologie

Technologie, en vooral internet, biedt de mogelijkheid om interventies voor het verhogen van welbevinden aan te bieden aan grote groepen mensen die hier vooral zelfstandig mee aan de slag kunnen. Maar de combinatie van positieve psychologie en technologie biedt veel meer kansen om het welbevinden van mensen te vergroten. In deze workshop gaan we in op de mogelijkheden van technologie, met behulp van voorbeelden van persuasieve technologie. Daarnaast zullen we, op een interactieve manier, laten zien op welke manier positieve psychologie en technologie elkaar kunnen versterken en hoe we daadwerkelijk kunnen komen tot positieve technologie

Effectiveness of a web-based intervention aimed at healthy dietary and physical activity behavior: a randomized controlled trial about users and usage

Background:\ud Recent studies have shown the potential of Web-based interventions for changing dietary and physical activity (PA) behavior. However, the pathways of these changes are not clear. In addition, nonusage poses a threat to these interventions. Little is known of characteristics of participants that predict usage.\ud \ud Objective:\ud In this study we investigated the users and effect of the Healthy Weight Assistant (HWA), a Web-based intervention aimed at healthy dietary and PA behavior. We investigated the value of a proposed framework (including social and economic factors, condition-related factors, patient-related factors, reasons for use, and satisfaction) to predict which participants are users and which participants are nonusers. Additionally, we investigated the effectiveness of the HWA on the primary outcomes, self-reported dietary and physical activity behavior.\ud \ud Methods:\ud Our design was a two-armed randomized controlled trial that compared the HWA with a waiting list control condition. A total of 150 participants were allocated to the waiting list group, and 147 participants were allocated to the intervention group. Online questionnaires were filled out before the intervention period started and after the intervention period of 12 weeks. After the intervention period, respondents in the waiting list group could use the intervention. Objective usage data was obtained from the application itself.\ud \ud Results:\ud In the intervention group, 64% (81/147) of respondents used the HWA at least once and were categorized as “users.” Of these, 49% (40/81) used the application only once. Increased age and not having a chronic condition increased the odds of having used the HWA (age: beta = 0.04, P = .02; chronic condition: beta = 2.24, P = .003). Within the intervention group, users scored better on dietary behavior and on knowledge about healthy behavior than nonusers (self-reported diet: χ22 = 8.4, P = .02; knowledge: F1,125 = 4.194, P = .04). Furthermore, users underestimated their behavior more often than nonusers, and nonusers overestimated their behavior more often than users (insight into dietary behavior: χ22 = 8.2, P = .02). Intention-to-treat analyses showed no meaningful significant effects of the intervention. Exploratory analyses of differences between pretest and posttest scores of users, nonusers, and the control group showed that on dietary behavior only the nonusers significantly improved (effect size r = −.23, P = .03), while on physical activity behavior only the users significantly improved (effect size r = −.17, P = .03).\ud \ud Conclusions:\ud Respondents did not use the application as intended. From the proposed framework, a social and economic factor (age) and a condition-related factor (chronic condition) predicted usage. Moreover, users were healthier and more knowledgeable about healthy behavior than nonusers. We found no apparent effects of the intervention, although exploratory analyses showed that choosing to use or not to use the intervention led to different outcomes. Combined with the differences between groups at baseline, this seems to imply that these groups are truly different and should be treated as separate entities

Evaluation of the Perceived Persuasiveness Questionnaire:User-Centered Card-Sort Study

Background: eHealth technologies aim to change users’ health-related behavior. Persuasive design and system features can make an eHealth technology more motivating, engaging, or supportive to its users. The Persuasive Systems Design (PSD) model incorporates software features that have the possibility to increase the persuasiveness of technologies. However, the effects of specific PSD software features on the effectiveness of an intervention are still largely unknown. The Perceived Persuasiveness Questionnaire (PPQ) was developed to gain insight into the working mechanisms of persuasive technologies. Although the PPQ seems to be a suitable method for measuring subjective persuasiveness, it needs to be further evaluated to determine how suitable it is for measuring perceived persuasiveness among the public. Objective: This study aims to evaluate the face and construct validity of the PPQ, identify points of improvement, and provide suggestions for further development of the PPQ. Methods: A web-based closed-ended card-sort study was performed wherein participants grouped existing PPQ items under existing PPQ constructs. Participants were invited via a Massive Open Online Course on eHealth. A total of 398 people (average age 44.15 years, SD 15.17; 251/398, 63.1% women) completed the card sort. Face validity was evaluated by determining the item-level agreement of the original PPQ constructs. Construct validity was evaluated by determining the construct in which each item was placed most often, regardless of the original placement and how often 2 items were (regardless of the constructs) paired together and what interitem correlations were according to a cluster analysis. Results: Four PPQ constructs obtained relatively high face validity scores: perceived social support, use continuance, perceived credibility, and perceived effort. Item-level agreement on the other constructs was relatively low. Item-level agreement for almost all constructs, except perceived effort and perceived effectiveness, would increase if items would be grouped differently. Finally, a cluster analysis of the PPQ indicated that the strengths of the newly identified 9 clusters varied strongly. Unchanged strong clusters were only found for perceived credibility support, perceived social support, and use continuance. The placement of the other items was much more spread out over the other constructs, suggesting an overlap between them. Conclusions: The findings of this study provide a solid starting point toward a redesigned PPQ that is a true asset to the field of persuasiveness research. To achieve this, we advocate that the redesigned PPQ should adhere more closely to what persuasiveness is according to the PSD model and to the mental models of potential end users of technology. The revised PPQ should, for example, enquire if the user thinks anything is done to provide task support but not how this is done exactly

Developing an online positive psychology application for people with bipolar disorder:‘How expectations of consumers and professionals turned into an intervention.’

INTRODUCTION: In Bipolar Disorder (BD), people report a lower quality of life and lower levels of well-being than the general population. Additionally, patients with bipolar disorder have unmet needs which are closely linked to elements of positive psychology. OBJECTIVES: The current study aimed to gain insight from patients with BD and care professionals about their thoughts of online Positive Psychology Interventions (PPI) to develop an app containing PPI’s for people with BD. METHODS: The study is conducted in accordance with the CeHRes roadmap principles. Data were collected by focus groups, questionnaires, rapid prototyping and online feedback from the participants. Three focus groups meetings (FGM) were held with consumers (8) and professionals (5). RESULTS: The FGM reveals a need for positive psychology interventions to cover some of the unmet needs that can be applied in an app in addition to the guidelines-advised treatment. Patients and professionals expect that PPIs in the current treatment in BD can meet some of the needs that are currently still unmet, specifically offering hope, increasing self-esteem, expressing feelings, acceptation and preventing social isolation. The process of contextual inquiry and value specification is helpful to guide this process. CONCLUSIONS: The consensus on the different topics about the use of positive psychology intervention shows that both consumers and professionals underline the importance of applying PPI’s in BD. The use during subsyndrome and mild depressive episodes seem the most beneficial periods for patients with BD. A more extended study has to be conducted to confirm if these findings are more generalizable DISCLOSURE: No significant relationships