Accepted for/Published in: JMIR Human Factors
Date Submitted: Apr 18, 2021
Open Peer Review Period: Apr 18, 2021 - Apr 22, 2021
Date Accepted: Apr 23, 2022
(closed for review but you can still tweet)
Bridging the ‘digital divide’ in psychological therapies: Engagement with the SlowMo mobile app for paranoia in psychosis
ABSTRACT
Background:
SlowMo is a digitally supported therapy for paranoia that was developed using inclusive, human-centred design to improve outcomes and address barriers to implementation. SlowMo significantly improved paranoia and wellbeing compared to treatment as usual in a recent randomised controlled trial of 362 people with psychosis.
Objective:
This study evaluates whether the design was effective in optimising the user experience of the SlowMo mobile app for a diverse range of people.
Methods:
Digital literacy, adherence (via system analytics and self-report) and user experience were assessed, and investigated in relation to demographics (i.e. gender, age, ethnicity, paranoia severity).
Results:
81% of therapy completers met the a priori analytics adherence criteria. Technology use and confidence was lower in Black people and older people. However, analytics adherence did not differ by demographics. High rates of user experience were reported overall (75%, SD = 17.06), although self-reported app use, enjoyment and usefulness were higher in women than men. No differences were found for ethnicity, age or paranoia severity.
Conclusions:
The SlowMo therapy design overcame the ‘digital divide’ in the user experience of psychosis therapies, validating the importance of employing human-centred design when developing therapeutics. SlowMo may address implementation barriers for minoritised groups of people with psychosis. It should be further developed and tested in the NHS. Clinical Trial: ISRCTN32448671
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