SynthesisJournal of medical Internet research2020
The Acceptability and Usability of Digital Health Interventions for Adults With Depression, Anxiety, and Somatoform Disorders: Qualitative Systematic Review and Meta-Synthesis.
Synthesis in Journal of medical Internet research, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT05685758 (A Treatment for Depression Via App-Based FTP), which is not on this map. Cited by 103 papers, 10 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
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.
A Treatment for Depression Via App-Based FTP (Game4Mood Study)
Who cites it
103 citing papers in PubMed, 10 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 191 citations in OpenAlex.
- The User Experience of Ambulatory Assessment and Mood Monitoring in Bipolar Disorder: Systematic Review and Meta-Synthesis of Qualitative Studies.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Barriers and Facilitators of User Engagement With Digital Mental Health Interventions for People With Psychosis or Bipolar Disorder: Systematic Review and Best-Fit Framework Synthesis.JMIR mental health · 2025Pooled it
- Digital Mental Health Interventions for Alleviating Depression and Anxiety During Psychotherapy Waiting Lists: Systematic Review.JMIR mental health · 2024Pooled it
- User engagement in clinical trials of digital mental health interventions: a systematic review.BMC medical research methodology · 2024Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Skill Enactment and Knowledge Acquisition in Digital Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Depression and Anxiety: Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.Journal of medical Internet research · 2023Pooled it
- Barriers to and Facilitators of Digital Health Among Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Populations: Qualitative Systematic Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2023Pooled it
- Effectiveness of digital mental health interventions for university students: an umbrella review.PeerJ · 2022Pooled it
- Economic Evaluations of Internet-Based Psychological Interventions for Anxiety Disorders and Depression: A Systematic Review.Journal of affective disorders · 2021Pooled it
- Identifying Active Ingredients that Cause Change in Digital Parent Training Programs for Child Behavior Problems: A Qualitative Exploration.Child psychiatry and human development · 2026Trial
- A Stepped Care Approach to Promoting Engagement in a Digital Health Intervention: Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of medical Internet research · 2026Trial
- Acceptability of home-based transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) in bipolar depression: thematic analysis of individual views.BMC psychiatry · 2025Trial
- Facilitating Thought Progression to Reduce Depressive Symptoms: Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of medical Internet research · 2024Trial
- Trial
- A National Health and Wellness SMS Text Message Program for Breast Cancer Survivors During COVID-19 (EMPOWER-SMS COVID-19): Mixed Methods Evaluation Using the RE-AIM Framework.Journal of medical Internet research · 2023Trial
- The Synergistic Effect of Nurse Proactive Phone Calls With an mHealth App Program on Sustaining App Usage: 3-Arm Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of medical Internet research · 2023Trial
- A Direct-to-Public Peer Support Program (Big White Wall) Versus Web-Based Information to Aid the Self-management of Depression and Anxiety: Results and Challenges of an Automated Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of medical Internet research · 2021Trial
- A blended intervention for adjustment disorder: Results from a feasibility trial.Internet interventions · 2026Article
- Translation, cross-cultural adaptation, and preliminary psychometric investigation of the Chinese version of the digital intervention barriers scale-7 (DIBS-7) among college students.BMC psychology · 2026Article
43 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe prevalence of mental health disorders continues to rise, with almost 4% of the world population having an anxiety disorder and almost 3.5% having depression in 2017. Despite the high prevalence, only one-third of people with depression or anxiety receive treatment. Over the last decade, the use of digital health interventions (DHIs) has risen rapidly as a means of accessing mental health care and continues to increase. Although there is evidence supporting the effectiveness of DHIs for the treatment of mental health conditions, little is known about what aspects are valued by users and how they might be improved.
objectiveThis systematic review aimed to identify, appraise, and synthesize the qualitative literature available on service users' views and experiences regarding the acceptability and usability of DHIs for depression, anxiety, and somatoform disorders.
methodsA systematic search strategy was developed, and searches were run in 7 electronic databases. Qualitative and mixed methods studies published in English were included. A meta-synthesis was used to interpret and synthesize the findings from the included studies.
resultsA total of 24 studies were included in the meta-synthesis, and 3 key themes emerged with descriptive subthemes. The 3 key themes were initial motivations and approaches to DHIs, personalization of treatment, and the value of receiving personal support in DHIs. The meta-synthesis suggests that participants' initial beliefs about DHIs can have an important effect on their engagement with these types of interventions. Personal support was valued very highly as a major component of the success of DHIs. The main reason for this was the way it enabled individual personalization of care.
conclusionsFindings from the systematic review have implications for the design of future DHIs to improve uptake, retention, and outcomes in DHIs for depression, anxiety, and somatoform disorders. DHIs need to be personalized to the specific needs of the individual. Future research should explore whether the findings could be generalized to other health conditions.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
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.