Apps to improve diet, physical activity and sedentary behaviour in children and adolescents: a review of quality, features and behaviour change techniques

Schoeppe et al. (2017) point out that there has been a rise in the number of commercial apps designed to enhance children’s health-related behaviors, but few have analyzed the content and quality of these apps targeting the youth. This review did exactly this, in the context of improving diet, physical activity and sedentary behaviour in children and adolescents. Also, the researchers looked at the relationships between app quality ratings, the number of app features, and behaviour change techniques (BCTs) used. To be included in this review, the apps were required to be available on the iTunes and Google Play stores, be designed to improve diet, physical activity and/or sedentary behaviour, be available in English, and have a user rating of at least 4+ based on at least 20 ratings. The 25 apps selected scored 3.6 out of 5 on overall app quality (assessed using the Mobile App Rating Scale). The highest scores were for functionality (average 4.1), followed by aesthetics (mean = 3.8), engagement (mean = 3.6), and information quality (mean = 2.8). On average, 6 behaviour change techniques were employed by the apps, including ‘instructions’ (most frequently used), ‘general encouragement’, ‘contingent rewards’, and ‘feedback on performance’. There was a correlation found between the app quality ratings with the number of technical app features and BCTs included. To summarize, popular commercial apps aimed at positively affecting the diet, physical activity and sedentary behaviour of children and adolescents were of moderate quality. Furthermore, there were more app features and BCTs in the higher quality apps. Future apps should find out what increases users’ app engagement and should be made for specific population groups. [NPID: diet intervention, mental health, apps, social media, sedentary behavior, behavior change techniques, physical activity, aesthetics, engagement, information quality, behaviors, app engagement]

Year: 2017

Reference: Schoeppe, S., Alley, S., Rebar, A. L., Hayman, M., Bray, N. A., Van Lippevelde, W., Gnam, J. P., Bachert, P., Direito, A., & Vandelanotte, C. (2017). Apps to improve diet, physical activity and sedentary behaviour in children and adolescents: a review of quality, features and behaviour change techniques. The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity, 14(1), 83. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12966-017-0538-3