Early psychosis app users valued reflection but reported everyday obstacles
Interviewees with early psychosis generally valued a therapy app's questionnaires and exercises, while reporting difficulty using it at work or socially. These interviews explored experiences rather than testing the app's effectiveness.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
People with early psychosis interviewed about an Acceptance and Commitment Therapy app generally described useful opportunities to notice feelings, thoughts and behavior. They also valued its exercises, but reported obstacles during work and social activities. These accounts explain users' experiences; they do not isolate the app's clinical effect from the wider therapy program.
This report analyzes interviews rather than a comparison of app outcomes. Participants' perceived benefits cannot establish treatment effectiveness, and the abstract does not indicate how widely each experience was shared among users.
What the app asked users to do
Between therapy sessions, the app sent prompts at random times during the day. Users completed brief questionnaires and therapy exercises or metaphors. The interviews examined how these features fitted into participants' daily lives.
Value and inconvenience coexisted
Participants linked the questionnaires with greater awareness of their internal experiences and evaluated the exercises positively. At the same time, practical obstacles affected use. Their feedback points to usability questions, without proving that changing the app would improve symptoms.
The original publication
Perspectives of Patients With Early Psychosis on the Use of an App in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy: A Qualitative Study.
Bouws J, Uyttebroek L, Beames JR et al.
Early Interv Psychiatry · 2025
- PubMed ID
- 40762443
- Record checked
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