• A mobile technology-based tail...

*Result*: A mobile technology-based tailored health promotion program for sedentary employees: development and usability study.

Title:
A mobile technology-based tailored health promotion program for sedentary employees: development and usability study.
Authors:
Lin YP; School of Nursing, China Medical University, 100, Sec. 1, Jingmao Rd, Taichung, 406040, Taiwan. yunping@mail.cmu.edu.tw.; Department of Nursing, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan. yunping@mail.cmu.edu.tw., Lee KC; School of Nursing, China Medical University, 100, Sec. 1, Jingmao Rd, Taichung, 406040, Taiwan.; Department of Nursing, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan., Ma WF; School of Nursing, China Medical University, 100, Sec. 1, Jingmao Rd, Taichung, 406040, Taiwan.; Department of Nursing, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan., Syu BS; School of Nursing, China Medical University, 100, Sec. 1, Jingmao Rd, Taichung, 406040, Taiwan., Liao WC; School of Nursing, China Medical University, 100, Sec. 1, Jingmao Rd, Taichung, 406040, Taiwan.; Department of Nursing, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan., Yang HT; School of Food Safety, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan., Lu SH; School of Nursing, China Medical University, 100, Sec. 1, Jingmao Rd, Taichung, 406040, Taiwan. shuhua@mail.cmu.edu.tw.; Department of Nursing, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan. shuhua@mail.cmu.edu.tw., Hong O; School of Nursing, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
Source:
BMC public health [BMC Public Health] 2025 Apr 17; Vol. 25 (1), pp. 1452. Date of Electronic Publication: 2025 Apr 17.
Publication Type:
Journal Article
Language:
English
Journal Info:
Publisher: BioMed Central Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 100968562 Publication Model: Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1471-2458 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 14712458 NLM ISO Abbreviation: BMC Public Health Subsets: MEDLINE
Imprint Name(s):
Original Publication: London : BioMed Central, [2001-
MeSH Terms:
Health Promotion*/methods , Sedentary Behavior* , Mobile Applications*, Humans ; Male ; Female ; Adult ; Telemedicine ; Middle Aged ; Exercise ; Program Development ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Workplace
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Grant Information:
MOST 106-2314-B-039-037 and MOST 107-2314-B-039-009 National Science and Technology Council
Contributed Indexing:
Keywords: Healthy diet; Mobile health; Physical activity; Sedentary behavior; Usability study; Workplace wellness
Entry Date(s):
Date Created: 20250417 Date Completed: 20250418 Latest Revision: 20250420
Update Code:
20260130
PubMed Central ID:
PMC12004656
DOI:
10.1186/s12889-025-22401-3
PMID:
40247254
Database:
MEDLINE

*Further Information*

*Background: Prolonged sedentary behavior in workplace settings is associated with increased health risks, including chronic diseases and reduced productivity. While various mobile health (mHealth) interventions exist, most focus on single behaviors such as physical activity (PA) or sedentary time, with limited solutions integrating diet, PA, and sedentary behavior for sedentary employees.
Objective: This study aimed to develop Simple Health, an evidence- and theory-based mHealth web app designed to promote healthy eating, increase PA, and reduce sedentary time among sedentary employees. The study also evaluated the app's usability.
Methods: The study followed a two-phase approach. In Phase 1, Simple Health was developed by a multidisciplinary team using social cognitive theory and the ecological model as theoretical foundations. Behavior change techniques such as goal-setting, self-monitoring, and personalized feedback were incorporated. In Phase 2, usability testing was conducted with eight sedentary employees. Participants used Simple Health for five days and completed the mHealth app usability questionnaire (MAUQ) to assess ease of use, interface satisfaction, and perceived usefulness. Open-ended feedback was also collected to identify areas for improvement.
Results: Most participants (87.5%) found Simple Health easy to use, with usability scores indicating favorable responses across ease of use (mean: 2.20/7), interface satisfaction (mean: 1.91/7), and usefulness (mean: 1.98/7). Participants valued the simplicity of behavior logging and the actionability of personalized advice. Suggestions for improvement included increasing goal-setting flexibility and refining navigation to enhance user experience.
Conclusions: The development and usability evaluation of Simple Health demonstrate its potential as a workplace mHealth intervention that integrates PA promotion, sedentary behavior reduction, and dietary tracking. While usability feedback was generally positive, refinements such as improved navigation and enhanced goal-setting flexibility could further optimize engagement. Future iterations should explore automatic syncing with wearable devices and expanded implementation in workplace wellness programs to assess long-term adoption and effectiveness.
(© 2025. The Author(s).)*

*Declarations. Ethics approval and consent to participate: The procedures used in this study adhere to the tenets of the Declaration of Helsinki. Ethics approval for this study was obtained from the China Medical University & Hospital Research Ethics Center (CRREC-106-036 [CR-1]). Written informed consent was obtained from all participants included in the study. Consent for publication: Not applicable. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.*