Accepted for/Published in: JMIR Human Factors
Date Submitted: Aug 2, 2023
Date Accepted: Feb 20, 2024
Assessing Differences in mHealth Usability and App Experiences among Young African American Women
ABSTRACT
Background:
In North Carolina, HIV continues to disproportionately affect young African American women. Although mobile health (mHealth) technology appears as a tool capable of making public health information more accessible for key populations, prior technology use and social determinants may impact users’ app experiences.
Objective:
The objective of this study was to evaluate mHealth usability, assessing differences based on prior technology use and social determinants among a sample of African American women in emerging adulthood.
Methods:
As part of a NIDA-funded randomized trial with African American women (ages 18-25), participants were assigned to receive an evidence-based HIV risk-reduction intervention via mHealth and were asked to complete usability surveys at 6- and 12-month follow-ups. Participants’ first survey responses were analyzed to examine bivariate associations that were significant at the P < .05 level.
Results:
Compared to the acceptable System Usability Scale (SUS) score of 68.0, the overall average SUS score was 69.2 (N = 159, SD = 17.9). Participants who had previously used a tablet indicated higher usability compared to participants without previous use (72.9 vs. 57.6; P < .001) and participants who had previously used a smartphone also reported higher usability compared to participants without previous use (71.9 vs. 58.0; p < .001). Differences in SUS scores were observed among those reporting homelessness (58.3 vs 70.8; P = .01), unemployment (65.9 vs 71.6; P = .04), and current in school enrollment (73.2 vs 65.4; P = .006). Statistically significant associations were not observed based on food insecurity (67.3 vs 69.9; P = .45).
Conclusions:
Although the SUS indicated above average usability, these findings demonstrate differences in mHealth usability based on past and current life experiences. As mHealth interventions become more prevalent, these findings may have important implications for deciding how refinements to mHealth apps can improve the reach of evidence-based interventions. Clinical Trial: Clinical Trials Registration: NCT02965014
Citation
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Copyright
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