As smartphone use increases dramatically, so do studies about technology overuse. Many different mobile apps for breaking "smartphone addiction" and achieving "digital wellbeing" are available. However, it is still not clear whether and how such solutions work. Which functionality do they have? Are they effective and appreciated? Do they have a relevant impact on users' behavior? To answer these questions, (i) we reviewed the features of 42 digital wellbeing apps, (ii) we performed a thematic analysis on 1,128 user reviews of such apps, and (iii) we conducted a 3-week-long in-the-wild study of Socialize, an app that includes the most common digital wellbeing features, with 38 participants. We discovered that digital wellbeing apps are appreciated and useful for some specific situations. However, they do not promote the formation of new habits and they are perceived as not restrictive enough, thus not effectively helping users to change their behavior with smartphones.

The Race Towards Digital Wellbeing: Issues and Opportunities / Monge Roffarello, Alberto; De Russis, Luigi. - STAMPA. - (2019), pp. 1-14. (Intervento presentato al convegno CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2019) tenutosi a Glasgow (UK) nel May 4-9, 2019) [10.1145/3290605.3300616].

The Race Towards Digital Wellbeing: Issues and Opportunities

Monge Roffarello, Alberto;De Russis, Luigi
2019

Abstract

As smartphone use increases dramatically, so do studies about technology overuse. Many different mobile apps for breaking "smartphone addiction" and achieving "digital wellbeing" are available. However, it is still not clear whether and how such solutions work. Which functionality do they have? Are they effective and appreciated? Do they have a relevant impact on users' behavior? To answer these questions, (i) we reviewed the features of 42 digital wellbeing apps, (ii) we performed a thematic analysis on 1,128 user reviews of such apps, and (iii) we conducted a 3-week-long in-the-wild study of Socialize, an app that includes the most common digital wellbeing features, with 38 participants. We discovered that digital wellbeing apps are appreciated and useful for some specific situations. However, they do not promote the formation of new habits and they are perceived as not restrictive enough, thus not effectively helping users to change their behavior with smartphones.
2019
978-1-4503-5970-2
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11583/2724317
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