Abstract
Commercial pregnancy apps are becoming popular in mobile health and integral to individuals' health management ecosystems. For that, they can complement medical advice and be conveniently used for ubiquitous tracking of pregnancy. Besides their functional and medical purpose, they may elicit subjective, personal, and intimate experiences that are equally relevant to users. Yet, these qualitative aspects of experiencing pregnancy apps remain under-researched. An inquiry into those qualitative aspects may help advance the design of pregnancy apps for improved user embodiment, engagement, and experience. Here, we qualitatively inquire about experiences with six popular pregnancy apps through 4,000+ online reviews. Our findings reveal that pregnancy apps are more than mere trackers and can impact pregnancy experiences, either positively or negatively, based on their design features. Further, reviews pointed to a neglect of family, friends, and relatives in the apps' design, which users found often problematic. To counter these shortcomings, we outline avenues for improving the design of pregnancy apps beyond usability and medical outcomes and call for enhancing their user experience through more sensitive, user-centered, and inclusive design.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
