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      Testing Usability and Acceptability of a Web Application to Promote Physical Activity (iCanFit) Among Older Adults

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          Abstract

          Background

          Most older Americans do not exercise regularly and many have chronic conditions. Among an increasing number of fitness mobile and Web apps, few are designed for older adults with chronic conditions despite high ownership rates of mobile tools and Internet access in this population. We designed a mobile-enabled Web app, iCanFit, to promote physical activity in this population.

          Objective

          This study aimed to test the usability and acceptability of iCanFit among older adults in a community setting.

          Methods

          A total of 33 older adults (aged 60 to 82 years) were recruited from communities to test iCanFit. Of these 33, 10 participants completed the usability testing in a computer room of a senior community center. A research assistant timed each Web application task and observed user navigation behavior using usability metrics. The other 23 participants used the website on their own devices at home and provided feedback after 2-3 weeks by completing a user-experience survey assessing ease of use, helpfulness, and satisfaction with iCanFit.

          Results

          Participants completed all 15 tasks on the iCanFit site in an average of 31 (SD 6.9) minutes; some tasks required more time or needed assistance. Participants’ comments were addressed to improve the site’s senior friendliness and ease of use. In the user-experience survey, participants reported high levels of usefulness and satisfaction. More than 56% (13/23) of participants indicated they would continue using the program and recommend it to their families or friends.

          Conclusions

          Testing usability and acceptability is a very important step in developing age-appropriate and user-friendly Web apps, especially for older adults. Testing usability and acceptability in a community setting can help reveal users’ experiences and feedback in a real-life setting. Our study suggested that older adults had a high degree of acceptance of iCanFit and could use it easily. The efficacy trial of iCanFit is currently underway.

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          IBM computer usability satisfaction questionnaires: Psychometric evaluation and instructions for use

          James R. Lewis (1995)
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            Older adults' attitudes towards and perceptions of "smart home" technologies: a pilot study.

            George Demiris, Marilyn Rantz, Myra A Aud … (2004)
            The study aim is to explore the perceptions and expectations of seniors in regard to "smart home" technology installed and operated in their homes with the purpose of improving their quality of life and/or monitoring their health status. Three focus group sessions were conducted within this pilot study to assess older adults' perceptions of the technology and ways they believe technology can improve their daily lives. Themes discussed in these groups included participants' perceptions of the usefulness of devices and sensors in health-related issues such as preventing or detecting falls, assisting with visual or hearing impairments, improving mobility, reducing isolation, managing medications, and monitoring of physiological parameters. The audiotapes were transcribed and a content analysis was performed. A total of 15 older adults participated in three focus group sessions. Areas where advanced technologies would benefit older adult residents included emergency help, prevention and detection of falls, monitoring of physiological parameters, etc. Concerns were expressed about the user-friendliness of the devices, lack of human response and the need for training tailored to older learners. All participants had an overall positive attitude towards devices and sensors that can be installed in their homes in order to enhance their lives.
            Article 0 comments Cited 113 times – based on 0 reviews     Review now
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              Evaluating User Perceptions of Mobile Medication Management Applications With Older Adults: A Usability Study

              Kelly Anne Grindrod, Melissa Li, Allison Gates (2014)
              Background Medication nonadherence has a significant impact on the health and wellbeing of individuals with chronic disease. Several mobile medication management applications are available to help users track, remember, and read about their medication therapy. Objective The objective of this study was to explore the usability and usefulness of existing medication management applications for older adults. Methods We recruited 35 participants aged 50 and over to participate in a 2-hour usability session. The average age ranged from 52-78 years (mean 67 years) and 71% (25/35) of participants were female. Each participant was provided with an iPad loaded with four medication management applications: MyMedRec, DrugHub, Pillboxie, and PocketPharmacist. These applications were evaluated using the 10 item System Usability Scale (SUS) and visual analog scale. An investigator-moderated 30-minute discussion followed, and was recorded. We used a grounded theory (GT) approach to analyze qualitative data. Results When assessing mobile medication management applications, participants struggled to think of a need for the applications in their own lives. Many were satisfied with their current management system and proposed future use only if cognition and health declined. Most participants felt capable of using the applications after a period of time and training, but were frustrated by their initial experiences with the applications. The early experiences of participants highlighted the benefits of linear navigation and clear wording (eg, “undo” vs “cancel”) when designing for older users. While there was no order effect, participants attributed their poor performance to the order in which they tried the applications. They also described being a part of a technology generation that did not encounter the computer until adulthood. Of the four applications, PocketPharmacist was found to be the least usable with a score of 42/100 (P<.0001) though it offered a drug interaction feature that was among the favorite features of participants. The usability scores for MyMedRec (56/100), DrugHub (57/100), and Pillboxie (52/100) were not significantly different and participants preferred MyMedRec and DrugHub for their simple, linear interfaces. Conclusions With training, adults aged 50 and over can be capable and interested in using mHealth applications for their medication management. However, in order to adopt such technology, they must find a need that their current medication management system cannot fill. Interface diversity and multimodal reminder methods should be considered to increase usability for older adults. Lastly, regulation or the involvement of older adults in development may help to alleviate generation bias and mistrust for applications.
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                Author and article information

                Contributors
                Yan Hong:
                School of Public HealthTexas A&M Health Science Center1266 TAMUCollege Station, TX, 77843United States1 97986217001 9794584264yhong@sph.tamhsc.edu
                ORCID: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1481-6495
                Journal
                Journal ID (nlm-ta): JMIR Hum Factors
                Journal ID (iso-abbrev): JMIR Hum Factors
                Journal ID (publisher-id): JMIR Human Factors
                Title: JMIR Human Factors
                Publisher: Gunther Eysenbach (JMIR Publications Inc., Toronto, Canada )
                ISSN (Electronic): 2292-9495
                Publication date Collection: Jul-Dec 2014
                Publication date (Electronic): 13 October 2014
                Volume: 1
                Issue: 1
                Electronic Location Identifier: e2
                Affiliations
                [1] 1School of Public Health Texas A&M Health Science Center College Station, TXUnited States
                [2] 2Department of Geography Texas A&M University College Station, TXUnited States
                [3] 3Department of Computer Science and Engineering Texas A&M University College Station, TXUnited States
                [4] 4DVD Associates Austin, TXUnited States
                [5] 5St Joseph Regional Health Center Bryan, TXUnited States
                [6] 6Environmental Geosciences Program Texas A&M University College Station, TXUnited States
                Author notes
                Corresponding Author: Yan Hong yhong@ 123456sph.tamhsc.edu
                Author information
                http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1481-6495
                http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5691-6988
                http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9481-9874
                http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8036-2383
                http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3429-9501
                http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9525-748X
                http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4483-7083
                http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3737-8627
                http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3679-9171
                Article
                Publisher ID: v1i1e2
                DOI: 10.2196/humanfactors.3787
                PMC ID: 4797672
                PubMed ID: 27025254
                SO-VID: 6cfe7cca-562d-4d08-8efe-b2ab73d8de69
                Copyright © ©Yan Hong, Daniel Goldberg, Deborah Vollmer Dahlke, Marcia G Ory, Jessica S Cargill, Rachel Coughlin, Edgar Hernandez, Debra K Kellstedt, S Camille Peres. Originally published in JMIR Human Factors (http://humanfactors.jmir.org), 13.10.2014.
                License:

                This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work, first published in JMIR Research Protocols, is properly cited. The complete bibliographic information, a link to the original publication on http://www.researchprotocols.org, as well as this copyright and license information must be included.

                History
                Date received : 15 August 2014
                Date revision requested : 02 September 2014
                Date revision received : 16 September 2014
                Date accepted : 23 September 2014
                Categories
                Subject: Original Paper
                Subject: Original Paper

                Keywords: physical activity,mobile health, older adults,usability testing,user experience
                Data availability:
                Keywords: physical activity, mobile health, older adults, usability testing, user experience

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