ArticleJournal of diabetes science and technology2019
Gamification and Behavior Change Techniques in Diabetes Self-Management Apps.
Article in Journal of diabetes science and technology, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT07280325 (Moxie), which is not on this map. Cited by 25 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Moxie: A Self-management Education and Support Program Using Advertising Principles to Reduce Rehospitalization for Cardiovascular-related Illnesses
Who cites it
25 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Investigating the approach of using behavior change techniques in the field of mobile applications: a systematic review.BMC health services research · 2025Pooled it
- The Quality of Mobile Apps Used for the Identification of Pressure Ulcers in Adults: Systematic Survey and Review of Apps in App Stores.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2020Pooled it
- My Diabetes Coach, a Mobile App-Based Interactive Conversational Agent to Support Type 2 Diabetes Self-Management: Randomized Effectiveness-Implementation Trial.Journal of medical Internet research · 2020Trial
- Gamification Elements in Physical Activity Interventions: Scoping Review and Taxonomy Based on the Octalysis Framework.JMIR serious games · 2026Review
- Habit strength as a partial explanation of the association between self-efficacy and self-management behaviors in type 2 diabetes: a multicenter cross-sectional study.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Improving Health-Related Symptoms and Behaviors in Children and Adolescents Diagnosed With Diabetes by Using a Virtual Reality-Gamified Self-Care Method: Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR XR and spatial computing · 2026Article
- Sugar slay: a gamified decision support ecosystem for type 1 diabetes.Frontiers in digital health · 2026Article
- Personalized Nutrition in the Era of Digital Health: A New Frontier for Managing Diabetes and Obesity.Food science & nutrition · 2025Review
- Cognitive Training Mobile Apps for Older Adults With Cognitive Impairment: App Store Search and Quality Evaluation.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2025Article
- Sleep hygiene games and gamification: where are we and where are we heading?Frontiers in sleep · 2025Review
- The effectiveness of digital twins in promoting precision health across the entire population: a systematic review.NPJ digital medicine · 2024Review
- Article
- Advancing Diabetes Self-Management: A Novel Smartphone Application Featuring a Scoring Algorithm for Tailored User Engagement.International journal of preventive medicine · 2024Article
- Barriers and Enablers to the Adoption of a Healthier Diet Using an App: Qualitative Interview Study With Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.JMIR diabetes · 2023Article
- Effectiveness of Digital Health Interventions Containing Game Components for the Self-management of Type 2 Diabetes: Systematic Review.JMIR serious games · 2023Review
- The Role of Habit Formation and Automaticity in Diabetes Self-Management: Current Evidence and Future Applications.Current diabetes reports · 2023Review
- Understanding health behavior change by motivation and reward mechanisms: a review of the literature.Frontiers in behavioral neuroscience · 2023Review
- Standardized evaluation of the quality and persuasiveness of mobile health applications for diabetes management.Scientific reports · 2022Article
- User Engagement and Abandonment of mHealth: A Cross-Sectional Survey.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Functional Mechanisms of Health Behavior Change Techniques: A Conceptual Review.Frontiers in psychology · 2022Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundDiabetes management apps may have positive effects on diabetes self-management. It remains unclear, however, which app features are particularly effective and encourage sustained app usage. Behavior change techniques (BCTs) and gamification are promising approaches to improve user engagement. However, little is known about the frequency BCTs and gamification techniques (GTs) are actually used. This app review aims to provide an overview of BCTs and GTs in current diabetes management apps.
methodsGoogle's Play Store was searched for applications using a broad search strategy (keyword: "diabetes"). We limited our research to freely available apps. A total of 56 apps matched the inclusion criteria and were reviewed in terms of the features they offer to support self-management. We used a taxonomy comprising 29 BCTs and 17 GTs to evaluate the applications. Two independent raters tested and evaluated each app.
resultsInterrater agreement was high (ICC = .75 for BCTs; ICC = .90 for GTs). An average of 7.4 BCTs (SD = 3.1) and an average of 1.4 out of 17 GTs (SD = 1.6) were implemented in each app. Five out of 29 BCTs accounted for 55.8% of the BCTs identified in total. The GT most often identified was "feedback" and accounted for 50% of the GTs.
conclusionsThe potential of BCTs and GTs in diabetes management apps has not been fully exploited yet. Only very restricted sets of BCTs and gamification features were implemented. Systematic research on the efficacy of specific BCTs and GTs is needed to provide further guidance for app design.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.