University of Twente Student Theses
Customisation in E-(mental) health
Smits, Ineke Sophie (2020) Customisation in E-(mental) health.
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| Abstract: | Background The digital healthcare sector has become an essential segment in the treatment of illnesses and the promotion of well-being. Still, attrition rates when using pertinent apps are high, bearing the consequence that the usefulness of e-health interventions in terms of health behaviour change is called into question. However, research in a variety of contexts has shown that customisable features in e-health interventions can combat attrition rates. This research project has explored the perceived effects of customisation on users’ intrinsic motivation for long-term usage. For this purpose, the e-mental health mobile application MoodMission was selected as technical basis of a case study since it has customisable features. Method This study employed a mixed-method approach in order to get a deeper understanding of the perceived role of customisation on user-engagement and mental health. Ten participants were asked to use MoodMission for 14 days. Before and after participants used the app, they were requested to fill in two online questionnaires, the General Anxiety Disorder-Scale 7 (GAD-7) and the WarwickEdinburgh Mental-Well-being Scale (WEMWBS). Subsequently, interviews with participants were conducted exploring the perceived effects of customisation on users’ intrinsic motivation to engage with the app from the perspective of the Self-Determination Theory (SDT). These interviews were analysed by using a framework approach. Results The results of the qualitative analysis revealed that the feature of customisation in MoodMission did not have an influence on volitional user engagement from the participants perspective. Participants mentioned main themes which were connected to meeting the need for competence and the need for autonomy. Yet, meeting the need for relatedness was not expressed by the participants. This finding was perceived to have influenced their intrinsic motivation to engage with the app. Consequently, most users stopped using the app. With regard to the quantitative data analysis, a dependent t-test showed both a non-significant change of well-being and anxiety. Conclusion As the overall result (no effects of customisation) seems to be widely linked to the specifics of MoodMission, further studies will be needed in order to overcome remediable defects as being present in MoodMission when it comes to customization. The author proposes to engage more intensively and with more participants into the exploration of persuasive strategies that can be considered to intrinsically motivate individuals to engage with e-mental health mobile applications over a long-term period. |
| Item Type: | Essay (Bachelor) |
| Faculty: | BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences |
| Subject: | 77 psychology |
| Programme: | Psychology BSc (56604) |
| Link to this item: | https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/81964 |
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