College student engagement with mental health apps: analysis of barriers to sustained use

Abstract

Objective: College students’demand for mental health resources is straining the services offered by colleges. While mobile apps demonstrate potential to help, students’ engagement with these apps remains low. This study examines why college students show poor engagement with mental health apps and how apps may be adapted to suit this population. Participants: Participants were a convenience sample of 100 college students. Methods: Qualitative data was gathered through individual online interviews concerningattitudes toward mental health apps, and quantitative data was gathered through a survey about phone and app use. Results: Students were interested in mental health apps. 53% haddownloaded an app at one point, but only 19% currently used a mental health app. Stress and costdrove mental health app choices. Responses around engagement centered on: Data privacy, user interface, credibility, and customization. Conclusions: Students have specific wants for mental health apps including safety, simplicity, credibility, and customizability.

Keywords:

• College students
• engagement
• mental health
• mobile apps

Conflict of interest disclosure

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. JT reports unrelated research support from Otsuka. The authors confirm that the research presented in this article met the ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements, of the United States and received approval from the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Institutional Review Board.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by a philanthropic gift from Jeremy Wertheimer.