Evaluation of a new iPhone Mood Management Application

None listed

This study will evaluate the usability, acceptability and impact of the Music eScape application and it’s capacity to promote wellbeing in young people. The eScape app is designed for users to identify their current and desired mood states and produce a playlist of mood-tagged music from their own music library that will help them achieve this. Prototype testing will be conducted to inform the development of the Music eScape app. Two groups of five participants will each be asked to complete a 30 minute survey, then attend a focus group to explore the mobile application and test it’s functionality. We are then seeking young people who experience at least mild levels of stress/distress to test the music-based mobile phone application. Young people will complete a brief 10-item screen questionnaire to determine their eligibility for participating in the study. 180 participants who report at least mild levels of stress/distress in the past month will be recruited for the outcome evaluation. Participants will be asked to complete an online survey, which will include questionnaires addressing emotion identification and regulation, wellbeing and involvement in music. Half of the participants will be asked to download the free eScape app on their mobile devices and trial it for one month (referred to as the immediate access group), while logging in their current and target moods, along with the success rate of the application in assisting them to reach their target mood. During their use of the application, details of app usage (e.g., number of times used, duration of use, features used) will be recorded and automatically downloaded. Participants will be followed up at the end of their one month of app use, and again two, three and six months later to complete online surveys addressing emotion regulation, wellbeing and their experience of using the mobile application. Participants will receive 4 SMS’s over their initial first month of app use to remind them to use the app. The remaining half will comprise a waitlist control, whose access to the application will be delayed by one month. Delayed app access provides a control group for comparison of mood regulation in absence of any intervention. Waitlisted participants will receive up to 4 SMS’s to minimise participant attrition. After this month, their involvement will replicate that of the immediate access group, outlined above.