Accepted for/Published in: JMIR Research Protocols
Date Submitted: Oct 26, 2025
Open Peer Review Period: Oct 30, 2025 - Dec 4, 2025
Date Accepted: Jan 29, 2026
(closed for review but you can still tweet)
Development and Formative Usability Evaluation of MiCARE: A Theory-Driven Progressive Web Application for Young Adult Wellness Engagement - A Mixed-Methods Protocol
ABSTRACT
Background:
Young adults face rising wellness challenges including prediabetes risk, requiring sustained engagement with preventive health interventions. Digital wellness applications offer promise for promoting healthy lifestyle behaviours, yet high dropout rates and inadequate personalization limit their effectiveness. This paper outlines the technical implementation and usability evaluation of MiCARE, a theory-driven progressive web application (PWA) designed to support sustained wellness engagement among young adults through user-centered design.
Objective:
Our aim is to systematically implement theory-driven design specifications into a functional web application, the MiCARE platform, and to conduct a rigorous usability evaluation with young adults aged 18-34 in Victoria, Australia, in both rural and urban areas using the Task-Technology Fit (TTF) and Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) frameworks to assess usability, usefulness, and satisfaction.
Methods:
This is an embedded mixed-methods study across two phases: Phase 3 and Phase 4. Phase 3 involves the technical implementation of six theory-driven features (empathetic chatbot, learning hub, dynamic goal setting, gamification, personalized reminders, progress dashboard) using HTML5/CSS3/JavaScript, Google Dialogflow ES, and Firebase services, following the Agile methodology over six months with biweekly self-managed sprints and clinical verification. Phase 4 is a three-month usability evaluation with 20 young adults aged 18-34 in Victoria, Australia. Participants will complete screening, initial, mid-point, and final surveys assessing usability, usefulness, and satisfaction, while real-time usage analytics captures engagement patterns. Data analysis will employ the TTF and UTAUT frameworks, with quantitative data analysed using descriptive statistics (R Studio), qualitative feedback analysed through thematic analysis (NVivo), and engagement patterns analysed via machine learning models. The study has received ethics approval from La Trobe University Human Research Ethics Committee (HEC24507).
Results:
The study is taking place between 2025 and 2026 and is currently in preparation for Phase 3 implementation. Evaluation results will be disseminated in academic forums, peer-reviewed publications in early-2027. The findings will enable us to evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, and usability of a theory-driven PWA for young adult wellness engagement.
Conclusions:
This study will be the first to explore the technical implementation and usability of a multi-theoretical, user-centered PWA for wellness engagement in preventive health, bridging the gap between conceptual frameworks and deployed interventions.
Citation
The author of this paper has made a PDF available, but requires the user to login, or create an account.
Copyright
© The authors. All rights reserved. This is a privileged document currently under peer-review/community review (or an accepted/rejected manuscript). Authors have provided JMIR Publications with an exclusive license to publish this preprint on it's website for review and ahead-of-print citation purposes only. While the final peer-reviewed paper may be licensed under a cc-by license on publication, at this stage authors and publisher expressively prohibit redistribution of this draft paper other than for review purposes.