mMotiv8: A smartphone-based contingency management intervention to promote smoking cessation

Cigarette smoking is the leading preventable cause of death and illness in the United States. We tested the usability, acceptability, and efficacy of a smartphone-based contingency management treatment to promote cessation. We used a nonconcurrent multiple-baseline design. Participants (N = 14) provided breath carbon monoxide (CO) samples by using a CO meter that was connected to the user's smartphone. An app (mMotiv8) housed on participants' smartphones automatically captured pictures of the CO sampling procedure to validate the end user's identity, and it prompted submissions via a push message delivered to participants' smartphones. Participants earned a $10 incentive for daily abstinence, which was added to a reloadable debit card. Overall, 4% of the CO samples were negative during baseline, and 89% were negative during treatment. Self-reported usability and acceptability were high, and 85% of the prompted samples were submitted. A smartphone intervention could be scalable and reduce the health consequences and costs associated with cigarette smoking, particularly in rural and low-income populations.