Selection of Behavior Change Techniques for Asthma Medication Adherence Apps: Evidence-Based Design Study.

Area of Science:

• Behavioral Science
• Digital Health
• Respiratory Medicine

Background:

• Poor medication adherence is a significant healthcare problem, increasing costs and negatively impacting patient outcomes.
• Mobile apps offer a scalable solution for adherence interventions, but often lack rigorous behavioral design.
• Nonadherence to asthma preventer inhalers is common, necessitating targeted interventions addressing its diverse influences.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify acceptable and practical behavior change techniques (BCTs) for a mobile app promoting medication adherence.
• To address specific factors influencing preventer inhaler adherence in adults with asthma.

Main Methods:

• Influences on inhaler adherence were identified through literature reviews and expert knowledge.
• Influences were mapped to mechanisms of action (MoAs) using the Theory and Techniques tool.
• Candidate BCTs were selected based on their potential to change MoAs, then filtered for acceptability and practicality.

Main Results:

• 31 influences on adherence were identified, mapping to 15 MoAs.
• An initial list of 41 candidate BCTs was generated.
• The final recommended list includes 24 BCTs after filtering for acceptability and practicality.

Conclusions:

• This study provides an evidence-based list of 24 BCTs for mobile apps to enhance adherence to preventer inhalers.
• App developers can use this list to improve adherence support, and healthcare decision-makers can identify effective apps.