ArticleJMIR formative research2022
A Smartphone Serious Game for Adolescents (Grow It! App): Development, Feasibility, and Acceptance Study.
Article in JMIR formative research, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Effectiveness of Digital Serious Games on Knowledge and Attitudes in Public Health Education: Systematic Review and Bayesian Network Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.Journal of medical Internet research · 2026Pooled it
- Readdressing the Ongoing Challenge of Missing Data in Youth Ecological Momentary Assessment Studies: Meta-Analysis Update.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Pooled it
- Personalization variables in digital mental health interventions for depression and anxiety in adolescents and youth: a scoping review.Frontiers in digital health · 2025Pooled it
- Naturalistic assessments across the lifespan: Systematic review of inhibition measures in ecological settings.Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews · 2024Pooled it
- Acceptability of Tele-mental Health Services Among Users: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.BMC public health · 2024Pooled it
- Article
- Responsible data selection method for algorithmic personalization of health apps: a case study on promoting mental health.Frontiers in digital health · 2026Article
- Young people's compliance with the Experience Sampling Method (ESM): Examining patterns, predictors and associations with well-being and mental health.Internet interventions · 2025Article
- From Burden to Enjoyment: A User-Centered Approach to Engage Adolescents in Intensive Longitudinal Research.Journal of adolescence · 2025Review
- Experience sampling methodology in pediatrics: a qualitative analysis of user perspectives on the PROfeel blended mHealth intervention for fatigue.Frontiers in digital health · 2025Article
- Serious Games for Serious Pain: Development and Initial Testing of a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Game for Patients With Advanced Cancer Pain.JCO clinical cancer informatics · 2024Article
- Digital Serious Games to Promote Behavior Change in Children With Chronic Diseases: Scoping Review and Development of a Self-Management Learning Framework.Journal of medical Internet research · 2024Article
- Smartphone-based serious games for mental health: a scoping review.Multimedia tools and applications · 2024Article
- Promoting Daily Well-being in Adolescents using mHealth.Journal of youth and adolescence · 2022Article
- Article
- Effective elements of eHealth interventions for mental health and well-being in children and adolescents: A systematic review.Digital healthReview
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Authors and funding
7 authors.
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Abstract
backgroundAnxiety and mood problems in adolescents often go unnoticed and may therefore remain untreated. Identifying and preventing the development of emotional problems requires monitoring and effective tools to strengthen adolescents' resilience, for example, by enhancing coping skills.
objectiveThis study describes the developmental process, feasibility, and acceptance of Grow It!, a multiplayer serious game app for adolescents aged 12-25 years. The app consists of the experience sampling method (ESM) to monitor thoughts, behaviors, and emotions in daily life to enhance self-insight and daily cognitive behavioral therapy-based challenges to promote adaptive coping.
methodsOur approach entails an iterative game design process combined with an agile method to develop the smartphone app. The incorporated game features (ie, challenges, chat functionality, and visual representation) in the Grow It! app were co-designed with adolescent end users to increase participant engagement and adherence.
resultsThe Grow It! app was delivered for Android and iOS in May 2020. Grow It! was offered to adolescents during the COVID-19 crisis between May and December 2020. Participants of the Grow It! COVID-19 study (sample 1: N=685; mean age 16.19, SD 3.11 years; 193/685, 28.2% boys; sample 2: N=1035; mean age 18.78, SD 3.51 years; 193/1035, 18.64% boys) completed 31.5% (13.2/42) to 49.5% (10.4/21) of challenges. Compliance of ESM was suboptimal (35.1/210, 16.7% to 32.5/105, 30.9%). Follow-up questionnaires indicated an overall score of the app of 7.1 out of 10. Moreover, 72.6% (278/383) to 75.6% (487/644) would recommend the app to friends.
conclusionsTo our knowledge, Grow It! is the first gamified ESM app that both measures individual differences in emotional dynamics and offers an integrated cognitive behavioral therapy-based intervention. Our findings support the feasibility and acceptance, and therefore applicability, of the Grow It! app in adolescents. Further iterations of this serious game app will focus on the increase of compliance and on providing participants feedback through their personal mood profiles.
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