Fifteen volunteer participants were recruited via email from the staff of the local technical university in Finland. Thirteen of the participants had not encountered and did not know the researchers prior to the study. Two of the participants had seen an earlier version, because they had volunteered in a short usability test in a laboratory. There were no specific inclusion criteria, only that the participants needed to be interested in stress management and willing to use a prototype mobile app. The app was described as an acceptance-, value-, and mindfulness-based self-help program designed to help in, for example, stress management and relaxation, increasing physical activity, and practicing mindful eating.
The 15 participants (9 female) were university staff, including, for example, a human resources manager, a secretary, a researcher, and a laboratory engineer. Five participants were younger than 30 years old, 5 were between 31 and 40 years, and 5 were older than 40 years.
The participants signed an informed consent form prior to the study and were aware of their right to withdraw from the study at any time. Ethics committee approval was not acquired as the study was deemed to involve minimal risk and the focus was on studying mainly user experiences.
Procedures
The participants filled in baseline questionnaires and attended a face-to-face group kick-off session, which consisted of two 10-minute presentations, one on ACT theory and one. The aim and process of the study were explained. An Android smartphone with pre-installed was provided for each of the participants to be used for one month. The phone model was either ZTE Blade (7 participants) or Sony Ericsson Xperia ray (8 participants). A short user guide about was provided on paper. Active, preferably daily use was recommended, but finding personally appropriate ways of use was also encouraged. The study period was one month in May. At the end of the study, each participant was given two movie tickets to compensate for the time spent in study procedures.
Measures
Data were collected from 3 sources: (1) online questionnaires completed at baseline, after one week’s use and after one month’s use, (2) interviews conducted after one month’s use, and (3) the usage log of app marketing, like https://appreviewsubmit.com/.
Background information (eg, age and previous experience in using mobile phones and wellness technologies) was collected at baseline. Wellness questionnaires were administered at baseline and after one month’s use. Psychological flexibility was assessed with a 7-item Acceptance and Action Questionnaire (AAQ-II). AAQ-II employs a 7-point Likert scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree) and includes negative statements, such as “Worries get in the ways of my success”. AAQ-II is scored from 7 to 49, and higher scores suggest less psychological flexibility. Results across seven samples with a total of 3280 participants have provided promising evidence as to the adequate structure, reliability, and validity of the AAQ-II. The Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) also employs a 7-point Likert scale and includes five positive statements, for example “in most ways my life is close to ideal”. The SWLS is scored from 5 to 35, where higher scores suggest higher satisfaction with life. The SWLS has been found to have good validity and reliability and has been shown to correlate with measures of mental health. The single-item stress scale has one statement: “Stress means a situation in which a person feels tense, restless, nervous or anxious or is unable to sleep at night because his/her mind is troubled all the time. Do you feel this kind of stress these days?” The response is recorded on a 5-point Likert scale varying from 1 (not at all) to 5 (very much). The stress scale has shown satisfactory content, criterion, and construct validity for group level analysis. Experienced wellness benefits were measured by user experience questionnaires after one week’s use and one month’s use. Three questions measured perceived usefulness in the maintenance and improvement of wellness, learning new skills, and gaining new insights. These questions were recorded with scales ranging from 1 (completely disagree) to 7 (completely agree).
Qualitative data on user experiences, usage, and usefulness were gathered in individual, semi-structured, face-to-face interviews after one month’s use. The interviews were designed among the authors and a discussion guide outlining the themes of the interview was created. Some of the themes included were: the situations where was used in, whether using affected the participant’s wellness, the user experiences of different features of, ability to persuade and reward usage, and desired new features. The first author, who has several years of experience in user experience studies, conducted the interviews. Each interview lasted about 45 minutes and was audio recorded.
The usage log files were collected from the phones after the interview. The usage log contained all user actions and their time stamps. The number of characters in diary entries was also logged, but not the content of the entries.
Study Participants and Recruitment
Fifteen volunteer participants were recruited via email from the staff of the local technical university in Finland. Thirteen of the participants had not encountered and did not know the researchers prior to the study. Two of the participants had seen an earlier version, because they had volunteered in a short usability test in a laboratory. There were no specific inclusion criteria, only that the participants needed to be interested in stress management and willing to use a prototype mobile app. The app was described as an acceptance-, value-, and mindfulness-based self-help program designed to help in, for example, stress management and relaxation, increasing physical activity, and practicing mindful eating.
The 15 participants (9 female) were university staff, including, for example, a human resources manager, a secretary, a researcher, and a laboratory engineer. Five participants were younger than 30 years old, 5 were between 31 and 40 years, and 5 were older than 40 years.
The participants signed an informed consent form prior to the study and were aware of their right to withdraw from the study at any time. Ethics committee approval was not acquired as the study was deemed to involve minimal risk and the focus was on studying mainly user experiences.
Procedures
The participants filled in baseline questionnaires and attended a face-to-face group kick-off session, which consisted of two 10-minute presentations, one on ACT theory and one. The aim and process of the study were explained. An Android smartphone with pre-installed was provided for each of the participants to be used for one month. The phone model was either ZTE Blade (7 participants) or Sony Ericsson Xperia ray (8 participants). A short user guide about was provided on paper. Active, preferably daily use was recommended, but finding personally appropriate ways of use was also encouraged. The study period was one month in May. At the end of the study, each participant was given two movie tickets to compensate for the time spent in study procedures.
Measures
Data were collected from 3 sources: (1) online questionnaires completed at baseline, after one week’s use and after one month’s use, (2) interviews conducted after one month’s use, and (3) the usage log of app marketing, like https://appreviewsubmit.com/.
Background information (eg, age and previous experience in using mobile phones and wellness technologies) was collected at baseline. Wellness questionnaires were administered at baseline and after one month’s use. Psychological flexibility was assessed with a 7-item Acceptance and Action Questionnaire (AAQ-II). AAQ-II employs a 7-point Likert scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree) and includes negative statements, such as “Worries get in the ways of my success”. AAQ-II is scored from 7 to 49, and higher scores suggest less psychological flexibility. Results across seven samples with a total of 3280 participants have provided promising evidence as to the adequate structure, reliability, and validity of the AAQ-II. The Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) also employs a 7-point Likert scale and includes five positive statements, for example “in most ways my life is close to ideal”. The SWLS is scored from 5 to 35, where higher scores suggest higher satisfaction with life. The SWLS has been found to have good validity and reliability and has been shown to correlate with measures of mental health. The single-item stress scale has one statement: “Stress means a situation in which a person feels tense, restless, nervous or anxious or is unable to sleep at night because his/her mind is troubled all the time. Do you feel this kind of stress these days?” The response is recorded on a 5-point Likert scale varying from 1 (not at all) to 5 (very much). The stress scale has shown satisfactory content, criterion, and construct validity for group level analysis. Experienced wellness benefits were measured by user experience questionnaires after one week’s use and one month’s use. Three questions measured perceived usefulness in the maintenance and improvement of wellness, learning new skills, and gaining new insights. These questions were recorded with scales ranging from 1 (completely disagree) to 7 (completely agree).
Qualitative data on user experiences, usage, and usefulness were gathered in individual, semi-structured, face-to-face interviews after one month’s use. The interviews were designed among the authors and a discussion guide outlining the themes of the interview was created. Some of the themes included were: the situations where was used in, whether using affected the participant’s wellness, the user experiences of different features of, ability to persuade and reward usage, and desired new features. The first author, who has several years of experience in user experience studies, conducted the interviews. Each interview lasted about 45 minutes and was audio recorded.
The usage log files were collected from the phones after the interview. The usage log contained all user actions and their time stamps. The number of characters in diary entries was also logged, but not the content of the entries.