It feels different from real life

Abstract

Mobile applications for mental health are being used by people suffering from mental health disorders. However, there is a paucity of knowledge in relation to their opinions about such applications. The aim of this study is to understand users' needs and expectations to self-manage their mental health through the use of mobile apps for mental health and to highlight possible design opportunities. We collected and analysed comments and reviews of users on a community forum, Reddit, and Apple's iTunes and Google's Google Play stores. We identified four requirements of technology related to: emotional use, real life context, users' interpretation about themselves and social aspects. Based upon our findings we proposed further exploration of two design sensitivities: Self-reflection and Co-experience.