scholarly journals Voice-Based Conversational Agents for the Prevention and Management of Chronic and Mental Health Conditions: Systematic Literature Review

10.2196/25933 ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. e25933
Author(s):  
Caterina Bérubé ◽  
Theresa Schachner ◽  
Roman Keller ◽  
Elgar Fleisch ◽  
Florian v Wangenheim ◽  
...  

Background Chronic and mental health conditions are increasingly prevalent worldwide. As devices in our everyday lives offer more and more voice-based self-service, voice-based conversational agents (VCAs) have the potential to support the prevention and management of these conditions in a scalable manner. However, evidence on VCAs dedicated to the prevention and management of chronic and mental health conditions is unclear. Objective This study provides a better understanding of the current methods used in the evaluation of health interventions for the prevention and management of chronic and mental health conditions delivered through VCAs. Methods We conducted a systematic literature review using PubMed MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, Scopus, and Web of Science databases. We included primary research involving the prevention or management of chronic or mental health conditions through a VCA and reporting an empirical evaluation of the system either in terms of system accuracy, technology acceptance, or both. A total of 2 independent reviewers conducted the screening and data extraction, and agreement between them was measured using Cohen kappa. A narrative approach was used to synthesize the selected records. Results Of 7170 prescreened papers, 12 met the inclusion criteria. All studies were nonexperimental. The VCAs provided behavioral support (n=5), health monitoring services (n=3), or both (n=4). The interventions were delivered via smartphones (n=5), tablets (n=2), or smart speakers (n=3). In 2 cases, no device was specified. A total of 3 VCAs targeted cancer, whereas 2 VCAs targeted diabetes and heart failure. The other VCAs targeted hearing impairment, asthma, Parkinson disease, dementia, autism, intellectual disability, and depression. The majority of the studies (n=7) assessed technology acceptance, but only few studies (n=3) used validated instruments. Half of the studies (n=6) reported either performance measures on speech recognition or on the ability of VCAs to respond to health-related queries. Only a minority of the studies (n=2) reported behavioral measures or a measure of attitudes toward intervention-targeted health behavior. Moreover, only a minority of studies (n=4) reported controlling for participants’ previous experience with technology. Finally, risk bias varied markedly. Conclusions The heterogeneity in the methods, the limited number of studies identified, and the high risk of bias show that research on VCAs for chronic and mental health conditions is still in its infancy. Although the results of system accuracy and technology acceptance are encouraging, there is still a need to establish more conclusive evidence on the efficacy of VCAs for the prevention and management of chronic and mental health conditions, both in absolute terms and in comparison with standard health care.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caterina Bérubé ◽  
Theresa Schachner ◽  
Roman Keller ◽  
Elgar Fleisch ◽  
Florian v. Wangenheim ◽  
...  

BACKGROUND Chronic and mental conditions are increasingly prevalent worldwide. As devices in our everyday lives offer more and more voice-based self-service, voice-based conversational agents (VCAs) have the potential to support the prevention and management of these conditions in a scalable way. VCAs allow for a more natural interaction compared to text-based conversational agents, facilitate input for users who cannot type, allow for routine monitoring and support when in-person healthcare is not possible, and open the doors to voice and speech analysis. The state of the art of VCAs for chronic and mental conditions is, however, unclear. OBJECTIVE This systematic literature review aims to provide a better understanding of state-of-the-art research on VCAs delivering interventions for the prevention and management of chronic and mental conditions. METHODS We conducted a systematic literature review using PubMed Medline, EMBASE, PsycINFO, Scopus, and Web of Science databases. We included primary research that involved the prevention or management of chronic or mental conditions, where the voice was the primary interaction modality of the conversational agent, and where an empirical evaluation of the system in terms of system accuracy and/or in terms of technology acceptance was included. Two independent reviewers conducted screening and data extraction and measured their agreement with Cohen’s kappa. A narrative approach was applied to synthesize the selected records. RESULTS Twelve out of 7’170 articles met the inclusion criteria. The majority of the studies (N=10) were non-experimental, while the remainder (N=2) were quasi-experimental. The VCAs provided behavioral support (N=5), a health monitoring service (N=3), or both (N=4). The VCA services were delivered via smartphone (N=5), tablet (N=2), or smart speakers (N=3). In two cases, no device was specified. Three VCAs targeted cancer, while two VCAs each targeted diabetes and heart failure. The other VCAs targeted hearing-impairment, asthma, Parkinson's disease, dementia and autism, “intellectual disability”, and depression. The majority of the studies (N=7) assessed technology acceptance but only a minority (N=3) used validated instruments. Half of the studies (N=6) reported either performance measures on speech recognition or on the ability of VCA’s to respond to health-related queries. Only a minority of the studies (N=2) reported behavioral measure or a measure of attitudes towards intervention-related health behavior. Moreover, only a minority of studies (N=4) reported controlling for participant’s previous experience with technology. CONCLUSIONS Considering the heterogeneity of the methods and the limited number of studies identified, it seems that research on VCAs for chronic and mental conditions is still in its infancy. Although results in system accuracy and technology acceptance are encouraging, there still is a need to establish evidence on the efficacy of VCAs for the prevention and management of chronic and mental conditions, both in absolute terms and in comparison to standard healthcare.


2018 ◽  
Vol 42 (3) ◽  
pp. 251-266 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mo Yee Lee ◽  
Xiafei Wang ◽  
Chang Liu ◽  
Salome Raheim ◽  
Susan Tebb

2017 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amy Mellow ◽  
Anna Tickle ◽  
Michael Rennoldson

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to conduct a systematic search of the peer-reviewed qualitative literature investigating the lived experience of seclusion for adults with mental health difficulties, to appraise the quality of the existing literature and synthesise findings. Background: seclusion is a controversial intervention for the short-term management of unsafe behaviours in inpatient mental health services. There has been some sporadic interest in service users’ experiences of this. Design/methodology/approach Systematic literature review and meta-synthesis: data sources – databases MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and PSYCINFO were searched in July 2015; review methods – the Joanna Briggs Institute’s Qualitative Assessment and Review Instrument tools for critical appraisal and data extraction were used to review papers and synthesise findings. Findings A small number of papers were found, which were of mixed quality. Originality/value The existing research is limited in both quantity and quality. Although most participants from the existing research described seclusion as mostly negative with the potential for causing iatrogenic harm, some described more positive experiences, often in the context of compassionate interactions with staff.


2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 222-233 ◽  
Author(s):  
David J. Bumgarner ◽  
Elizabeth J. Polinsky ◽  
Katharine G. Herman ◽  
Joanne M. Fordiani ◽  
Carmen P. Lewis ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 196-207 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine E. Gould ◽  
Brian C. Kok ◽  
Vanessa K. Ma ◽  
Aimee Marie L. Zapata ◽  
Jason E. Owen ◽  
...  

Diabetes ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 68 (Supplement 1) ◽  
pp. 70-LB
Author(s):  
ALEJANDRA M. WIEDEMAN ◽  
YING FAI NGAI ◽  
AMANDA M. HENDERSON ◽  
CONSTADINA PANAGIOTOPOULOS ◽  
ANGELA M. DEVLIN

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huiting Xie

BACKGROUND Many people are affected by mental health conditions, yet its prevalence in certain populations are not well documented. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study is to describe the attributes of people with mental health conditions in U.S and SG in terms of: perception of mental health recovery and its correlates such as strengths self-efficacy, resourcefulness and stigma experience. With the findings, not only could the knowledge base for mental health recovery in both countries be enhanced but interventions and policies relating to self-efficacy, resourcefulness and de-stigmatization for mental health recovery could be informed. METHODS A A cross-sectional, descriptive study with convenience sample of 200 community dwelling adults were selected, 100 pax from the United States (U.S) and 100 pax from Singapore (SG). Adults with serious mental illnesses without substance abuse impacting on their recovery were recruited. Participants completed self-administered questionaires measuring their mental health recovery, strengths self-efficacy, resourcefulness and stigma experience. RESULTS This study offered the unique opportunity to examine mental health recovery as well as its correlates such as strengths self-efficacy, resourcefulness and stigma experience from both the United States and Singapore. While the perception of mental health recovery and positive attributes like strengths self-efficacy and resourcefulness remained strong in participants with serious mental illnesses across both countries, people with serious mental illnesses in both countries still experienced negative perception like stigma. The findings would not only inform strategies to promote mental health recovery but also enhance the focus on correlates such as strengths self-efficacy and resourcefulness across both countries. CONCLUSIONS The findings would not only inform strategies to promote mental health recovery but also enhance the focus on correlates such as strengths self-efficacy and resourcefulness across both countries.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document