Review and Evaluation of Mindfulness-Based iPhone Apps

Area of Science:

• Digital Health
• Psychology
• Mobile Health Interventions

Background:

• Mindfulness positively impacts wellbeing.
• Mobile apps offer a scalable delivery method for mindfulness training.
• The quality of available mindfulness apps is largely unknown.

Purpose of the Study:

• Systematically review mindfulness mobile applications.
• Evaluate app quality using the Mobile Application Rating Scale (MARS).
• Identify features of high-quality mindfulness apps.

Main Methods:

• Searched iTunes and Google Apps Marketplace for mindfulness apps.
• Included apps providing mindfulness training and education; excluded simple timers/meditation tracks.
• Expert raters assessed app quality using MARS subscales; inter-rater reliability was established.

Main Results:

• Identified 560 relevant mindfulness apps, with 23 meeting inclusion criteria.
• Median Mobile Application Rating Scale (MARS) score was 3.2/5.0, exceeding the minimum acceptable score.
• Headspace (4.0), Smiling Mind (3.7), iMindfulness (3.5), and Mindfulness Daily (3.5) received the highest ratings.

Conclusions:

• Many mindfulness apps are basic, lacking quality in aesthetics, engagement, and information.
• Few apps demonstrate high quality across all assessed MARS subscales.
• Limited evidence exists on the efficacy of mindfulness apps for skill development.