ArticleJMIR mHealth and uHealth2020
App-Based Delivery of Clinical Emotional Freedom Techniques: Cross-Sectional Study of App User Self-Ratings.
Article in JMIR mHealth and uHealth, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT06338085 (The Effect of Emotional Freedom Technique on Depressive and Menopausal Symptoms in Postmenopausal Women), which is not on this map. Cited by 6 papers, 1 of them a synthesis 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.
The Effect of Emotional Freedom Technique on Depressive and Menopausal Symptoms in Postmenopausal Women
Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Clinical EFT as an evidence-based practice for the treatment of psychological and physiological conditions: A systematic review.Frontiers in psychology · 2022Pooled it
- The Many Faces of Stress: Preliminary Validation of a Remote Photoplethysmography-Based Tool for Psychophysiological Stress and Emotional Distress Monitoring.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Emotional Freedom Techniques for Anxiety Disorders: A Systematic Review.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT): Tap to relieve stress and burnout.Journal of interprofessional education & practice · 2023Article
- Using energy psychology to remediate emotional wounds rooted in childhood trauma: preliminary clinical guidelines.Frontiers in psychology · 2023Review
- Uses of Energy Psychology Following Catastrophic Events.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
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe burgeoning area of mobile health (mHealth) has experienced rapid growth in mobile apps designed to address mental health issues. Although abundant apps offer strategies for managing symptoms of anxiety and stress, information regarding their efficacy is scarce.
objectiveThis study aimed to assess the effect of an mHealth app on user self-ratings of psychological distress in a sample of 270,461 app users. The Tapping Solution App guides users through the therapeutic protocols of Clinical Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), an evidence-based psychophysiological intervention that combines acupressure with elements of cognitive and exposure therapies.
methodsApp users provided self-ratings of emotional intensity before and after app sessions (termed "tapping meditations") using an 11-point Subjective Units of Distress scale. App user data for 23 tapping meditations, which addressed psychological symptoms of anxiety and stress, were gathered between October 2018 and October 2019, totaling 380,034 completed app sessions.
resultsAcross 12 anxiety-tapping meditations, the difference in emotional intensity ratings from presession (mean 6.66, SD 0.25) to postsession (mean 3.75, SD 0.30) was statistically significant (P<.001; 95% CI -2.92 to -2.91). Across 11 stress-tapping meditations, a statistically significant difference was also found from presession (mean 6.91, SD 0.48) to postsession (mean 3.83, SD 0.54; P<.001; 95% CI -3.08 to -3.07). The results are consistent with the literature on the efficacy of Clinical EFT for anxiety and stress when offered in conventional therapeutic formats.
conclusionsThe findings provide preliminary support for the effectiveness of the mHealth app in the immediate reduction of self-rated psychological distress. As an adjunct to professional mental health care, the app promises accessible and convenient therapeutic benefits.
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