Designing for emotionalwell-being: Integrating persuasion and customization into mental health technologies

Renwen Zhang, Kathryn E. Ringland, Melina Paan, David C. Mohr, Madhu Reddy

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

46 Scopus citations

Abstract

A growing body of work has emphasized the need for customizability and fexibility in mobile health technologies to support user autonomy. However, customization may be burdensome for people with motivational and cognitive challenges, such as those with mental illnesses, and the optimal level and type of customizability are unclear. Based on 32 interviews with people who experience symptoms of depression and anxiety, we examine how individuals use and customize mental health apps to manage their symptoms. Our fndings suggest that participants' engagement with the apps is afected by their level of energy and motivation, depending on the severity of symptoms. Customization is deemed desirable when the required user efort does not exceed users' mental and motivational capacity and when ample resources are available. We discuss how customizable systems can increase autonomy without overburdening users in the context of mental health.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publicationCHI 2021 - Proceedings of the 2021 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
Subtitle of host publicationMaking Waves, Combining Strengths
PublisherAssociation for Computing Machinery
ISBN (Electronic)9781450380966
DOIs
StatePublished - May 6 2021
Event2021 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems: Making Waves, Combining Strengths, CHI 2021 - Virtual, Online, Japan
Duration: May 8 2021May 13 2021

Publication series

NameConference on Human Factors in Computing Systems - Proceedings

Conference

Conference2021 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems: Making Waves, Combining Strengths, CHI 2021
Country/TerritoryJapan
CityVirtual, Online
Period5/8/215/13/21

Funding

The authors would like to thank the individuals who participated in this study. We also thank the anonymous reviewers for their valuable feedback. This work was supported by the United States National Institute of Mental Health under grants R01MH100482 and T32MH115882. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the ofcial views of the National Institutes of Health.

Keywords

  • Behavior change
  • Customization
  • Ethics
  • Mental health
  • Mhealth
  • Mobile apps
  • Persuasion

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Software
  • Human-Computer Interaction
  • Computer Graphics and Computer-Aided Design

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