TY  - JOUR
AU  - Þórarinsdóttir, Helga
AU  - Kessing, Lars Vedel
AU  - Faurholt-Jepsen, Maria
PY  - 2017
DA  - 2017/02/13
TI  - Smartphone-Based Self-Assessment of Stress in Healthy Adult Individuals: A Systematic Review
JO  - J Med Internet Res
SP  - e41
VL  - 19
IS  - 2
KW  - smartphone
KW  - emotional stress
KW  - healthy individuals
KW  - self-report
KW  - objective smartphone generated measures of stress
AB  - Background: Stress is a common experience in today’s society. Smartphone ownership is widespread, and smartphones can be used to monitor health and well-being. Smartphone-based self-assessment of stress can be done in naturalistic settings and may potentially reflect real-time stress level. Objective: The objectives of this systematic review were to evaluate (1) the use of smartphones to measure self-assessed stress in healthy adult individuals, (2) the validity of smartphone-based self-assessed stress compared with validated stress scales, and (3) the association between smartphone-based self-assessed stress and smartphone generated objective data. Methods: A systematic review of the scientific literature was reported and conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) statement. The scientific databases PubMed, PsycINFO, Embase, IEEE, and ACM were searched and supplemented by a hand search of reference lists. The databases were searched for original studies involving healthy individuals older than 18 years, measuring self-assessed stress using smartphones. Results: A total of 35 published articles comprising 1464 individuals were included for review. According to the objectives, (1) study designs were heterogeneous, and smartphone-based self-assessed stress was measured using various methods (e.g., dichotomized questions on stress, yes or no; Likert scales on stress; and questionnaires); (2) the validity of smartphone-based self-assessed stress compared with validated stress scales was investigated in 3 studies, and of these, only 1 study found a moderate statistically significant positive correlation (r=.4; P<.05); and (3) in exploratory analyses, smartphone-based self-assessed stress was found to correlate with some of the reported smartphone generated objective data, including voice features and data on activity and phone usage. Conclusions: Smartphones are being used to measure self-assessed stress in different contexts. The evidence of the validity of smartphone-based self-assessed stress is limited and should be investigated further. Smartphone generated objective data can potentially be used to monitor, predict, and reduce stress levels. 
SN  - 1438-8871
UR  - http://www.jmir.org/2017/2/e41/
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2196/jmir.6397
UR  - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28193600
DO  - 10.2196/jmir.6397
ID  - info:doi/10.2196/jmir.6397
ER  -