Scouring the Web to learn new ways to instill better health habits? Trying to find the best health app to lose weight or reduce stress? Or maybe you’re posting on Twitter and Facebook to try to build a supportive community for your healthy goals. Online and mobile health interventions are getting easier to come by but psychologists say that while social media and Internet-based treatment programs can be beneficial, there is a need for rigorous methods to help guide the development and evaluation of these programs and apps.
In a special issue of Health Psychology®, published this month, psychology practitioners and researchers discuss a range of health behaviors targeted by online and mobile platforms, including smoking cessation, substance abuse, physical activity, tanning, sleep, stress management and medication adherence.