Smartphone Apps for Problematic Pornography Use: A Review of Content and Quality

Area of Science:

• Digital Health
• Psychology
• Mobile Health Interventions

Background:

• Problematic pornography use (PPU) is linked to adverse psychosocial outcomes.
• Access to effective psychosocial treatments for PPU can be limited.
• Mobile health (mHealth) applications offer a potential avenue to overcome treatment access barriers.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review and assess the features and quality of available mHealth apps for PPU.
• To identify common functionalities and therapeutic content within these applications.

Main Methods:

• A systematic review of iPhone applications related to PPU was conducted.
• The Mobile App Rating Scale (MARS) was used to evaluate app quality.
• App features, content (mindfulness, CBT, psychoeducation), and user ratings were analyzed.

Main Results:

• Twenty-three apps were analyzed; common features included abstinence tracking and goal setting.
• Mindfulness, CBT, or strategy-based content was present in less than half of the apps.
• Apps with therapeutic content scored higher on engagement, but app store ratings did not correlate with quality or features.

Conclusions:

• mHealth apps incorporating mindfulness, CBT, or coping strategies may be more engaging and higher quality.
• The quality of PPU mHealth apps is not reliably indicated by public app store ratings.
• Findings can guide the development of improved mHealth tools for PPU support.