The multi-faceted usage patterns of nutrition apps: a survey on the appropriation of nutrition apps among German-speakin
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Open Access
RESEARCH ARTICLE
The multi‑faceted usage patterns of nutrition apps: a survey on the appropriation of nutrition apps among German‑speaking users of MyFitnessPal Paula Stehr1* , Veronika Karnowski2 and Constanze Rossmann1
Abstract Background: Current systematic reviews of randomized controlled trials suggest positive influences of mobile appbased health promotion programs on dietary and physical activity behaviors. However, the actual adoption of and rates of nutrition app use remain low among the overall population. Therefore, we took a step back and investigated actual use patterns. In doing so, we took an appropriation perspective in order to reveal different styles of everyday life integration of these apps. Methods: We conducted an online survey with 761 German-speaking users of the MyFitnessPal app. Respondents were asked about their detailed use of nutrition apps according to an adapted version of the mobile phone appropriation model. Based on a cluster analysis, different user types were identified. These user types were compared and further described based on analyses of variance. In addition, we conducted a multinomial logistic regression to determine significant predictors of the varying usage patterns. Results: Four different user types were identified: (1) Supported, (2) Indifferent, (3) Health-conscious, and (4) Socializer. These user types mainly differed regarding three aspects: (1) their willingness to adjust default settings to one’s own needs and abilities, (2) the role of social support and social norms, and (3) app use for socializing and competition. Conclusions: Our study sheds light on the multi-faceted appropriation patterns of nutrition apps in Germany, thus paving the way for future studies on mHealth appropriation patterns and the design of more refined mHealth-interventions. Keywords: Nutrition apps, Mobile apps, mHealth, Appropriation, MPA model Background Due to huge coverage, mass media campaigns are mainly capable of imparting knowledge concerning healthrelated issues, but their effects regarding actual behavioral changes remain limited [1]. At the same time, the *Correspondence: paula.stehr@uni‑erfurt.de 1 Department of Media and Communication Science, University of Erfurt, Erfurt, Germany Full list of author information is available at the end of the article
number of smartphone users is continuously increasing with the global mobile internet penetration having reached 47% in 2018 [2]. More and more often, scholars therefore suggest mobile media as a means to close this gap, in particular through the use of mobile apps [3, 4]. This suggestion originates with the deep embedding of mobile phones and in particular smartphones into the everyday lives of their users, constantly accompanying them throughout their daily lives [5] and thus, enabling them to continuously collect personal health data [6].
© The Author(s) 2020. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, dist
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