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Abstract
As PPI research embraces the use of the Internet, it is incumbent on the research community to keep up with the ever-evolving best practices in online intervention research. This paper provides an overview of current practices in online positive psychological intervention (OPPI) research and suggests improvements to those practices. Drawing from the broader online intervention literature, the paper outlines important considerations in the design of OPPIs (including user engagement, dosage, and free choice) as well as in their empirical evaluation (including sample selection, statistical approaches, and comparison groups).
Notes
1. For the purposes of this paper, when I say ‘OPPIs,’ I am assuming these are interventions that are created with the intention of testing for efficacy.
2. Not all online intervention research suffers from high dropout rates, but it takes much more work to retain participants online; high retention rates are the exception rather than the norm.
3. Multilevel modeling is only possible with more than two time points, which presents an additional challenge, as some studies are initial pilots and do not meet this criterion. Since multilevel modeling allows for the best possible treatment of missing data, it is important for even pilots to include at least one follow-up assessment so that these methods can be used.