BACKGROUND
Alzheimer's Disease (AD) is the most prevalent cause of dementia globally. Because of ageing populations and limited access to treatments, there is a pressing need for innovative cognitive markers supporting timely preventive interventions. This study introduces NavegApp, an innovative Serious Game (SG) for assessing Spatial Cognition (SC), a potential source of preclinical cognitive markers for AD.
OBJECTIVE
This study aims to determine the content validity and usability perception of NavegApp, an innovative serious game for assessing Spatial Cognition across multiple groups of interest.
METHODS
A multi-step process integrating methodologies from software engineering, psychometrics and health measurement was implemented to validate the software. A panel of eight experts evaluated the relevance and representativeness of tasks included in the app, whereas 212 participants were enrolled to test its digital ergonomics and usability.
RESULTS
NavegApp was deemed valid and highly usable by experts and users. Tasks included in the game are representative and relevant for measuring SC components. Digital ergonomics was perceived as positive by experts and young adults. Additionally, moderate differences in usability perceptions were observed in participants with sporadic mild cognitive impairment compared to cognitively healthy participants.
CONCLUSIONS
NavegApp is a valid and user-friendly SG designed for SC assessment, crafted by merging software development and measurement properties evaluation principles. We outline a comprehensive strategy for SG development in cognitive assessment. While innovative, our approach emphasizes the crucial role of integrating psychometric validity measures from the outset of SG design.