ArticleChild and adolescent psychiatry and mental health2021
Mobile-based interventions for common mental disorders in youth: a systematic evaluation of pediatric health apps.
Article in Child and adolescent psychiatry and mental health, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 20 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
20 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 41 citations in OpenAlex.
- Commercially available mobile health applications for obesity across the lifespan: a systematic search and quality assessment.International journal of obesity (2005) · 2026Pooled it
- Evaluating Characteristics and Quality of Mental Health Apps Available in App Stores for Indian Users: Systematic App Search and Review.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2025Pooled it
- Heterogeneity of Treatment Effects in Internet- and Mobile-Based Interventions for Depression: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.JAMA network open · 2024Pooled it
- A Mobile Application Adjunct to Augment Cognitive-Behavioral Group Therapy for Adolescents with Social Anxiety: Feasibility and Acceptability Results from the Wiring Adolescents with Social Anxiety via Behavioral Interventions Pilot Trial.Journal of child and adolescent psychopharmacology · 2023Trial
- Article
- Developing a Machine Learning Model for Personalized, Predictor-Centric, Adaptive Intervention for Vaping Cessation in Young People: Secondary Data Analysis of Smartphone App Data.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2026Article
- Development and pilot-testing of an app to complement trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy for adolescents.European journal of psychotraumatology · 2025Article
- Cluster-Based Predictive Modeling of User Ratings for Physical Activity Apps Using Mobile App Rating Scale (MARS) Dimensions: Model Development and Validation.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2025Article
- Attitudes Towards Digital Health Interventions in Germany: Findings From a Population-Based Representative Survey.Clinical psychology in Europe · 2025Article
- mHealth Applications for Childhood Anxiety Disorders: Current Landscape, Challenges, and Future Directions.Current psychiatry reports · 2025Review
- The Use of Mobile Apps in Adolescent Psychotherapy: Assessment of Psychotherapists' Perspectives.JMIR formative research · 2025Article
- Depression Self-Care Apps' Characteristics and Applicability to Older Adults: Systematic Assessment.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Article
- Diversity, equity and inclusion considerations in mental health apps for young people: protocol for a scoping review.BMJ open · 2024Article
- Rates of Trauma Exposure and Posttraumatic Stress in a Pediatric Digital Mental Health Intervention: Retrospective Analysis of Associations With Anxiety and Depressive Symptom Improvement Over Time.JMIR pediatrics and parenting · 2024Article
- Outpatient screening for anxiety and depression symptoms in adolescents with type 1 diabetes - a cross-sectional survey.Child and adolescent psychiatry and mental health · 2023Article
- Towards a youth mental health paradigm: a perspective and roadmap.Molecular psychiatry · 2023Review
- Children's and Caregivers' Review of a Guided Imagery Therapy Mobile App Designed to Treat Children With Functional Abdominal Pain Disorders: Leveraging a Mixed Methods Approach With User-Centered Design.JMIR formative research · 2023Article
- Standardized evaluation of the quality and persuasiveness of mobile health applications for diabetes management.Scientific reports · 2022Article
- Unveiling mechanisms of change in digital interventions for depression: Study protocol for a systematic review and individual participant data meta-analysis.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2022Article
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Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe access to empirically-supported treatments for common mental disorders in children and adolescents is often limited. Mental health apps might extend service supplies, as they are deemed to be cost-efficient, scalable and appealing for youth. However, little is known about the quality of available apps. Therefore, we aimed to systematically evaluate current mobile-based interventions for pediatric anxiety, depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
methodsSystematic searches were conducted in Google Play Store and Apple App Store to identify relevant apps. To be eligible for inclusion, apps needed to be: (1) designed to target either anxiety, depression or PTSD in youth (0-18 years); (2) developed for children, adolescents or caregivers; (3) provided in English or German; (4) operative after download. The quality of eligible apps was assessed with two standardized rating systems (i.e., Mobile App Rating Scale (MARS) and ENLIGHT) independently by two reviewers.
resultsOverall, the searches revealed 3806 apps, with 15 mental health apps (0.39%) fulfilling our inclusion criteria. The mean overall scores suggested a moderate app quality (MARS: M = 3.59, SD = 0.50; ENLIGHT: M = 3.22, SD = 0.73). Moreover, only one app was evaluated in an RCT. The correlation of both rating scales was high (r = .936; p < .001), whereas no significant correlations were found between rating scales and user ratings (p > .05).
conclusionsOur results point to a rather poor overall app quality, and indicate an absence of scientific-driven development and lack of methodologically sound evaluation of apps. Thus, future high-quality research is required, both in terms of theoretically informed intervention development and assessment of mental health apps in RCTs. Furthermore, institutionalized best-practices that provide central information on different aspects of apps (e.g., effectiveness, safety, and data security) for patients, caregivers, stakeholders and mental health professionals are urgently needed.
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