SynthesisJournal of medical Internet research2020
Design Features for Improving Mobile Health Intervention User Engagement: Systematic Review and Thematic Analysis.
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. Cited by 134 papers, 14 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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
134 citing papers in PubMed, 14 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Patients' perspectives on medication adherence feedback interventions for managing long-term medications: a systematic review of qualitative evidence.International journal of clinical pharmacy · 2026Pooled it
- Engagement With Conversational Agent-Enabled Interventions in Cardiometabolic Disease Self-Management: Systematic Review.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2025Pooled it
- Planning for the Unexpected and Unintended Effects of mHealth Interventions: Systematic Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Pooled it
- Engagement in Digital Self-management Interventions for Chronic Pain: A Systematic Review.The Clinical journal of pain · 2025Pooled it
- Understanding the effectiveness and design of parent-oriented mobile health interventions: a systematic review and narrative synthesis.BMC pediatrics · 2025Pooled it
- Digital Health Interventions Are Effective for Irritable Bowel Syndrome Self-Management: A Systematic Review.Digestive diseases and sciences · 2025Pooled it
- Timing, Indicators, and Approaches to Digital Patient Experience Evaluation: Umbrella Systematic Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2024Pooled it
- Design and development of a mobile-based self-care application for patients with depression and anxiety disorders.BMC medical informatics and decision making · 2023Pooled it
- Design Features Associated With Engagement in Mobile Health Physical Activity Interventions Among Youth: Systematic Review of Qualitative and Quantitative Studies.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2023Pooled it
- Potential associations between behavior change techniques and engagement with mobile health apps: a systematic review.Frontiers in psychology · 2023Pooled it
- Digital Patient Experience: Umbrella Systematic Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2022Pooled it
- Language Use in Conversational Agent-Based Health Communication: Systematic Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2022Pooled it
- Characteristics of Mobile Health Platforms for Depression and Anxiety: Content Analysis Through a Systematic Review of the Literature and Systematic Search of Two App Stores.Journal of medical Internet research · 2022Pooled it
- Quality and Adoption of COVID-19 Tracing Apps and Recommendations for Development: Systematic Interdisciplinary Review of European Apps.Journal of medical Internet research · 2021Pooled it
- Characteristics of Tailored Text Messages Associated With Increased Physical Activity Among Cardiac Rehabilitation Enrollees: Secondary Analysis of a Microrandomized Trial.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2026Trial
- The Effectiveness of the Headspace App for Improving Sleep: Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of medical Internet research · 2026Trial
- A Randomized Controlled Trial of a Digital Stepped-Care Program to Reduce Anxiety and Depressive Symptoms Among Long-Term Care Workers With Psychological Distress: The REPICAL Study.Depression and anxiety · 2026Trial
- Cerina-Cognitive Behavioral Therapy-Based Mobile App for Managing Generalized Anxiety Disorder Symptoms Among University Students: Results From a Pilot Feasibility Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2025Trial
- Promoting substance use stigma resistance through an automated text message intervention (project RESTART): Outcomes of a pilot feasibility trial.Journal of substance use and addiction treatment · 2025Trial
- Increasing physical activity among adults affected by COVID-19 social distancing restrictions: A feasibility trial of an online intervention.Journal of behavioral medicine · 2024Trial
74 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
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundWell-designed mobile health (mHealth) interventions support a positive user experience; however, a high rate of disengagement has been reported as a common concern regarding mHealth interventions. To address this issue, it is necessary to summarize the design features that improve user engagement based on research over the past 10 years, during which time the popularity of mHealth interventions has rapidly increased due to the use of smartphones.
objectiveThe aim of this review was to answer the question "Which design features improve user engagement with mHealth interventions?" by summarizing published literature with the purpose of guiding the design of future mHealth interventions.
methodsThis review followed the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) checklist. Databases, namely, PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Ovid EMBASE, and Ovid PsycINFO, were searched for English and Chinese language papers published from January 2009 to June 2019. Thematic analysis was undertaken to assess the design features in eligible studies. The Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool was used to assess study quality.
resultsA total of 35 articles were included. The investigated mHealth interventions were mainly used in unhealthy lifestyle (n=17) and chronic disease (n=10) prevention programs. Mobile phone apps (n=24) were the most common delivery method. Qualitative (n=22) and mixed methods (n=9) designs were widely represented. We identified the following 7 themes that influenced user engagement: personalization (n=29), reinforcement (n=23), communication (n=20), navigation (n=17), credibility (n=16), message presentation (n=16), and interface aesthetics (n=7). A checklist was developed that contained these 7 design features and 29 corresponding specific implementations derived from the studies.
conclusionsThis systematic review and thematic synthesis identified useful design features that make an mHealth intervention more user friendly. We generated a checklist with evidence-based items to enable developers to use our findings easily. Future evaluations should use more robust quantitative approaches to elucidate the relationships between design features and user engagement.
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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.