University students� experiences of Fitbit use and interpretations of digital health data (Preprint)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marianne Irene Clark ◽  
Matthew Driller
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
University Students ◽  
Behavior Change ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
Emotional Responses ◽  
Data Interpretation ◽  
Digital Data ◽  
Related Data ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Wearable Activity Trackers

BACKGROUND Wearable fitness trackers are becoming increasingly affordable and accessible making them an alluring tool for mHealth interventions and strategies. Research to date has focused primarily on issues of efficacy, accuracy and acceptability with equivocal conclusions, yet little is known about how individuals interpret and make sense of their personalized data in relationship to health. This knowledge could elaborate on existing understandings of user experience and enhance the design and implementation of mHealth initiatives involving self-tracking technology. OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to gain an in-depth understanding of how university students respond to and interpret personalized data generated by wearable activity-trackers in relation to health. METHODS Data were collected through four focus groups (N=26) with university students in New Zealand who voluntarily wore a Fitbit for 7 days for a separate research study. Focus group questions sought to explore how students engaged with and made sense of their digital data in relationship to health and physical activity and their perceptions of the value of the Fitbit. RESULTS Findings suggest wearing an activity tracker can prompt both positive and negative emotional responses that influence interpretation of data and have implications for behavior change. Results also show that data interpretation is highly dependent on contextual factors and that meanings of health are highly individual. Participants suggested that the knowledge gained through self-tracking was not sufficient to prompt behavior change, and that further support around navigating barriers to physical activity was needed. CONCLUSIONS Acknowledging the emotional responses evoked by digital data may enhance the design of future mHealth initiatives involving self-tracking technologies. Providing guidance and support around data interpretation may also help maximize the usefulness of these technologies, as the meanings of health-related data appear to be contingent upon the context in which it is generated and interpreted.

scholarly journals Consumer Views on Health Applications of Consumer Digital Data and Health Privacy Among US Adults: Qualitative Interview Study (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Grande ◽  
Xochitl Luna Marti ◽  
Raina M Merchant ◽  
David A Asch ◽  
Abby Dolan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Data Collection ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
National Sample ◽  
Digital Data ◽  
Digital Information ◽  
Related Data ◽  
Qualitative Interview Study ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Digital Footprints ◽  
Health Applications

BACKGROUND In 2020, the number of internet users surpassed 4.6 billion. Individuals who create and share digital data can leave a trail of information about their habits and preferences that collectively generate a digital footprint. Studies have shown that digital footprints can reveal important information regarding an individual’s health status, ranging from diet and exercise to depression. Uses of digital applications have accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic where public health organizations have utilized technology to reduce the burden of transmission, ultimately leading to policy discussions about digital health privacy. Though US consumers report feeling concerned about the way their personal data is used, they continue to use digital technologies. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to understand the extent to which consumers recognize possible health applications of their digital data and identify their most salient concerns around digital health privacy. METHODS We conducted semistructured interviews with a diverse national sample of US adults from November 2018 to January 2019. Participants were recruited from the Ipsos KnowledgePanel, a nationally representative panel. Participants were asked to reflect on their own use of digital technology, rate various sources of digital information, and consider several hypothetical scenarios with varying sources and health-related applications of personal digital information. RESULTS The final cohort included a diverse national sample of 45 US consumers. Participants were generally unaware what consumer digital data might reveal about their health. They also revealed limited knowledge of current data collection and aggregation practices. When responding to specific scenarios with health-related applications of data, they had difficulty weighing the benefits and harms but expressed a desire for privacy protection. They saw benefits in using digital data to improve health, but wanted limits to health programs’ use of consumer digital data. CONCLUSIONS Current privacy restrictions on health-related data are premised on the notion that these data are derived only from medical encounters. Given that an increasing amount of health-related data is derived from digital footprints in consumer settings, our findings suggest the need for greater transparency of data collection and uses, and broader health privacy protections.

scholarly journals mHealth wearables and smartphone health tracking apps: A changing privacy landscape

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Christine Suver ◽  
Ellen Kuwana
Keyword(s):  
Data Privacy ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Unintended Consequences ◽  
Digital Data ◽  
Health Technologies ◽  
Related Data ◽  
Health Apps ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Being There

The use of digital health technologies is changing the ways people monitor and manage their health and well-being. There is increasing interest in using wearables and smartphone health apps to collect health-related data, a domain within digital health referred to as mHealth. Wearables and health apps can continuously monitor metrics such as physical activity, sleep, and heart rate, to name a few. These mHealth data can supplement the measures taken by healthcare professionals during regular doctor’s visits, with mHealth having the advantage of a much greater frequency of collection. But what are the privacy considerations with mHealth? This paper explores global data privacy protections, enumerates principles to guide regulations, discusses the tension between anonymity and data utility, and proposes ways to improve how we as a society talk about and safeguard data privacy. We include brief discussions about inadvertent or unintended consequences of digital data collection and the trade-off between privacy and public health interests, such as is illustrated by COVID-19 contract tracing apps. This paper concludes by offering suggestions for consideration about improving privacy and confidentiality notices.

scholarly journals Consumer Views on Health Applications of Consumer Digital Data and Health Privacy Among US Adults: Qualitative Interview Study

10.2196/29395 ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (6) ◽  
pp. e29395
Author(s):  
David Grande ◽  
Xochitl Luna Marti ◽  
Raina M Merchant ◽  
David A Asch ◽  
Abby Dolan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Data Collection ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
National Sample ◽  
Digital Data ◽  
Digital Information ◽  
Related Data ◽  
Qualitative Interview Study ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Digital Footprints ◽  
Health Applications

Background In 2020, the number of internet users surpassed 4.6 billion. Individuals who create and share digital data can leave a trail of information about their habits and preferences that collectively generate a digital footprint. Studies have shown that digital footprints can reveal important information regarding an individual’s health status, ranging from diet and exercise to depression. Uses of digital applications have accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic where public health organizations have utilized technology to reduce the burden of transmission, ultimately leading to policy discussions about digital health privacy. Though US consumers report feeling concerned about the way their personal data is used, they continue to use digital technologies. Objective This study aimed to understand the extent to which consumers recognize possible health applications of their digital data and identify their most salient concerns around digital health privacy. Methods We conducted semistructured interviews with a diverse national sample of US adults from November 2018 to January 2019. Participants were recruited from the Ipsos KnowledgePanel, a nationally representative panel. Participants were asked to reflect on their own use of digital technology, rate various sources of digital information, and consider several hypothetical scenarios with varying sources and health-related applications of personal digital information. Results The final cohort included a diverse national sample of 45 US consumers. Participants were generally unaware what consumer digital data might reveal about their health. They also revealed limited knowledge of current data collection and aggregation practices. When responding to specific scenarios with health-related applications of data, they had difficulty weighing the benefits and harms but expressed a desire for privacy protection. They saw benefits in using digital data to improve health, but wanted limits to health programs’ use of consumer digital data. Conclusions Current privacy restrictions on health-related data are premised on the notion that these data are derived only from medical encounters. Given that an increasing amount of health-related data is derived from digital footprints in consumer settings, our findings suggest the need for greater transparency of data collection and uses, and broader health privacy protections.

scholarly journals Assessment of Dietary Habits, Physical Activity and Lifestyle in Medical University Students

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 3572
Author(s):  
Lavinia-Maria Pop ◽  
Magdalena Iorga ◽  
Iulia-Diana Muraru ◽  
Florin-Dumitru Petrariu
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Fast Food ◽  
Dietary Habits ◽  
Healthy Life ◽  
Related Data ◽  
The Third ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Medical University ◽  
Busy Schedule

A busy schedule and demanding tasks challenge medical students to adjust their lifestyle and dietary habits. The aim of this study was to identify dietary habits and health-related behaviours among students. A number of 403 students (80.40% female, aged M = 21.21 ± 4.56) enrolled in a medical university provided answers to a questionnaire constructed especially for this research, which was divided into three parts: the first part collected socio-demographic, anthropometric, and medical data; the second part inquired about dietary habits, lifestyle, sleep, physical activity, water intake, and use of alcohol and cigarettes; and the third part collected information about nutrition-related data and the consumption of fruit, vegetables, meat, eggs, fish, and sweets. Data were analysed using SPSS v24. Students usually slept M = 6.71 ± 1.52 h/day, and one-third had self-imposed diet restrictions to control their weight. For both genders, the most important meal was lunch, and one-third of students had breakfast each morning. On average, the students consumed 1.64 ± 0.88 l of water per day and had 220 min of physical activity per week. Data about the consumption of fruit, vegetables, meat, eggs, fish, sweets, fast food, coffee, tea, alcohol, or carbohydrate drinks were presented. The results of our study proved that medical students have knowledge about how to maintain a healthy life and they practice it, which is important for their subsequent professional life.

Reasons and Barriers for University Students’ Leisure-Time Physical Activity: Moderating Effect of Health Education

2019 ◽  
Vol 126 (6) ◽  
pp. 1084-1100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saulius Sukys ◽  
Vida J. Cesnaitiene ◽  
Arunas Emeljanovas ◽  
Brigita Mieziene ◽  
Irena Valantine ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Health Education ◽  
University Students ◽  
Leisure Time ◽  
Leisure Time Physical Activity ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
Physically Active ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Fitness And Health ◽  
The Relationship

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between health education and motives and barriers for university students’ engagement in leisure-time physical activity (PA). The research sample included 709 students (312 females and 397 males) in different years of study, ranging in age between 18-25 years. A questionnaire survey method revealed a significant positive relationship between fitness and health motives and students’ leisure-time PA. External barriers were negative predictors of students’ leisure-time PA, while more health education-related courses per week were positively associated with students’ leisure-time PA. Finally, we found that the number of health education-related courses per week moderated the relationship between fitness and health motives and students’ leisure-time PA. These findings suggest that university students’ fitness and health motives and external barriers to be physically active outweigh other motives and barriers in determining their leisure-time PA. In addition, health education in university studies can effectively increase students’ health-related motivation for PA.

scholarly journals Depression, Anxiety, Stress and Physical Activity in Health-Related University Students during COVID-19

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivana Škrlec ◽  
Jasminka Talapko ◽  
Emina Pustijanac ◽  
Tomislav Meštrović
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
University Students ◽  
Health Related

scholarly journals Theory Integration for Lifestyle Behavior Change in the Digital Age: An Adaptive Decision-Making Framework (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chao Zhang ◽  
Daniël Lakens ◽  
Wijnand A IJsselsteijn
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Behavior Change ◽  
Computational Models ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
Digital Data ◽  
Lifestyle Behaviors ◽  
Lifestyle Behavior ◽  
Theory Integration ◽  
Digital Intervention ◽  
Adaptive Decision Making

UNSTRUCTURED Despite the growing popularity of digital health interventions, limitations of traditional behavior change theories and a lack of theory integration hinder theory-driven behavior change applications. In this paper, we aim to review theories relevant to lifestyle behavior change from the broader psychology literature and then integrate these theories into a new theoretical framework called adaptive decision-making to address two specific problems. First, our framework represents lifestyle behaviors at two levels—one of individual daily decisions (action level) and one of larger behavioral episodes (reflection level)—to more closely match the temporal characteristics of lifestyle behaviors and their associated digital data. Second, the framework connects decision-making theories and learning theories to explain how behaviors and cognitive constructs dynamically influence each other, making it a suitable scaffold for building computational models. We map common digital intervention techniques onto the behavioral and cognitive processes in the framework and discuss possible contributions of the framework to both theory development and digital intervention design.

scholarly journals Dietary Consumption of Polyphenols in University Students—Relationship with Their Health-Related Habits

Proceedings ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 61 (1) ◽  
pp. 21
Author(s):  
Maria J Rodríguez-Lagunas ◽  
Francisco J Pérez-Cano ◽  
Filipa Vicente ◽  
Paula Pereira ◽  
Margarida Castell
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
University Students ◽  
Smoking Habit ◽  
Antioxidant Properties ◽  
Daily Consumption ◽  
Potential Health ◽  
Consumption Frequency ◽  
Lifestyle Questionnaire ◽  
Health Related ◽  
The Relationship

Polyphenols are compounds derived from plants found in foods with potential health benefits due to their antioxidant properties. The aim of this study was to establish the consumption of polyphenols in university students and the relationship between the amount of polyphenols consumed and their health-related habits. For this, 270 university students answered a validated food consumption frequency questionnaire (FFQ), a physical activity questionnaire (IPAQ), and a health and lifestyle questionnaire. From the FFQ, the daily consumption of classes and subclasses of polyphenols was calculated. Then, the population was classified in terciles according to the polyphenol consumption, and the physical activity, smoking habits, and the prevalence of allergy and obesity in each tercile was established. The consumption of polyphenols was about 1.5 g/day, being flavonoids and phenolic acids the most consumed. The main sources of polyphenol consumption were cocoa, coffee, and to a lesser extent, fruits. There were no significant differences in consumption according to sex, BMI, health status, or physical activity. The smoking habit was related to a high consumption of polyphenols, mainly those that came from coffee and cocoa. Students who smoke had a higher consumption of polyphenols with respect to nonsmokers, especially those derived from coffee.

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