Participatory Technology Development to Enhance Community Resilience

Abstract

Objective: To assess the feasibility of a novel, partnered technology development process to co-create mobile health applica­tions (apps) addressing community health priorities, using psychoeducation of cogni­tive behavioral therapy (CBT) principles for enhancing resilience as an example.Design: Stakeholder engagement, work­groups, pilot feasibility study using mixed methods during October 2013 through January 2016 over three phases: 1) defining the vision of the project and increasing technical capacity, 2) co-development and pilot testing of the app, and 3) planning for sustainability.Setting: An academic-community partner­ship in South Los Angeles, California.Participants: Eight stakeholders; 30 pilot participants from the community.Main Outcome Measures: Qualitative analysis of audio-recordings of the app development process and stakeholder inter­views, surveys of stakeholders’ perception of the development process, app use data, and feedback from pilot participants.Results: The participatory technology development process resulted in creation and pilot-testing of a resiliency-focused text messaging app. Of the 1,107 messages sent, 23 out of 30 (77%) app users responded to explore interactive content. Stakeholders reported increased perceived competency in creating mobile apps and that the process fostered a culture of co-leadership. There was also sustained engagement in mobile app development by stakeholders beyond the initial project period.Conclusions: This is the first study, to our knowledge, to demonstrate the feasibility of participatory technology development, an approach involving direct participation in the development, tailoring and maintenance of a mobile app by a broad set of stakehold­ers with high representation from racial/ ethnic minorities from an under-resourced community. Participatory technology devel­opment is a promising approach for creating sustainable, relevant and engaging health technologies across different technological, clinical and community settings.Ethn Dis. 2018:28(Suppl 2):493-502; doi:10.18865/ed.28.S2.493.