A scoping review of the use of data analytics for the evaluation of mHealth applications

Abstract

Method: Five stages of conducting a scoping review are implemented: 1) identifying the research questions 2) identifying the relevant studies 3) study selection 4) data charting and 5) collecting, summarising, and reporting the results. Electronic databases used for the literature search included Scopus, Google Scholar, PubMed, and JMIR. Using the identified search terms for the scope -specific contents and two levels of screening 43 documents were included for the final data extraction. Results: There is an increasing trend within the published works in our database, specifically peaking in 2018 and 2019. Usability and Effectiveness Evaluations are the most common reported evaluations for mHealth Apps. User surveys are the most frequently used traditional evaluation method, together with statistical analysis. Newly proposed evaluation methods include log or usage data analytics or implementing new frameworks. Conclusion: This scoping review highlighted the value of conducting further research for the standardization of the evaluation of mHealth Apps. A growing trend and implementation of data analytics are observed within the health domain. We conclude that a framework that incorporates data analytic tools and techniques would be of great value to mHealth App developers, evaluators, and users.