¡Aptívate!: A Spanish-language behavioral activation mobile application for delivery via primary care

Treatment for depression is a core health disparity for Latino/as in the United States. U.S. Latino/as are most likely to report depressive symptoms to primary care physicians, who often have limited resources for providing evidence-based psychological depression treatment. This limited treatment accessibility is further compounded by additional treatment barriers, including stigma related to seeking mental health treatment and limited English proficiency. Mobile technologies, including smartphones and mobile applications (apps) delivered via smartphone, are promising for addressing this treatment need. Herein, we discuss the development of a Spanish-language brief behavioral activation mobile application, ¡Aptívate!, that was developed to disseminate depression-based psychological treatment via primary care to Spanish-speaking Latino/as. This article focuses on the description of (a) rationale for ¡Aptívate! treatment development, (b) treatment components, and (c) a clinical case example describing potential implementation in primary care. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).