Watkins Ivan, Xie Bo
Care Manag J. 2015;16(1):2-13. doi: 10.1891/1521-0987.16.1.2.
Fruit and vegetable (FV) consumption can improve older adults' health outcomes, but conventional interventions can be resource demanding and make it difficult to provide just-in-time intervention content. iPad-based interventions may help overcome these limitations, but little is known about how older adults might perceive and use iPads for FV consumption. To address this gap in the literature, we conducted a qualitative study to explore older adults' perceptions and use of iPads for improving FV consumption between February and August of 2012. Five focus group sessions each lasting 120 min were conducted with 22 older adult participants. During each session, participants received guided exposure and instruction on iPad use and then explored three iPad applications targeting FV consumption (MyFood, FiveADay Lite, and Whole Foods Market Recipes). Detailed notes from focus group interviews were analyzed with a grounded theory approach that applied a constant comparative method to enable themes to emerge from the data. Three themes were identified from the data regarding participants' baseline perceptions of iPads. These included (a) limited knowledge on iPad's functions, (b) iPads were intended for younger users, and (c) iPads were too expensive. Themes identified regarding participants' perceptions of iPads after guided exposure included (a) the touchscreen was easier to use than a computer mouse, (b) tapping the interface required practice, (c) portability was an asset in conjunction with functionality, (d) portability and functionality supported personal interests, (e) the difficulty of learning an iPad's functions varied, and (f) practice and instruction helped overcome fear of the iPad. Finally, participants recommended iPad app features that could help them overcome barriers to their FV intake. These included (a) locating inexpensive FV from nearby sources, (b) providing tailored food and recipe suggestions, and (c) tracking and communicating FV intake with a doctor. These findings have important implications for future research on mobile app-based eHealth interventions to improve older adults' FV intake.
食用水果和蔬菜（FV）有助于改善老年人的健康状况，但传统干预措施可能需要大量资源，且难以提供及时的干预内容。基于iPad的干预措施可能有助于克服这些限制，但对于老年人如何看待和使用iPad来增加FV摄入量，我们知之甚少。为了填补这一文献空白，我们于2012年2月至8月进行了一项定性研究，以探讨老年人对iPad的看法以及使用iPad改善FV摄入量的情况。我们与22名老年参与者进行了5次焦点小组讨论，每次讨论持续120分钟。在每次讨论中，参与者接受了关于iPad使用的引导式接触和指导，然后探索了三款针对FV摄入量的iPad应用程序（MyFood、FiveADay Lite和Whole Foods Market Recipes）。我们采用扎根理论方法对焦点小组访谈的详细笔记进行了分析，该方法应用了持续比较法，以使主题从数据中浮现出来。从数据中确定了关于参与者对iPad基线看法的三个主题。这些主题包括：（a）对iPad功能的了解有限；（b）iPad是为年轻用户设计的；（c）iPad太贵。在引导式接触后确定的关于参与者对iPad看法的主题包括：（a）触摸屏比电脑鼠标更容易使用；（b）点击界面需要练习；（c）便携性与功能性相结合是一项优势；（d）便携性和功能性支持个人兴趣；（e）学习iPad功能的难度因人而异；（f）练习和指导有助于克服对iPad的恐惧。最后，参与者推荐了有助于他们克服FV摄入量障碍的iPad应用程序功能。这些功能包括：（a）从附近来源找到便宜的FV；（b）提供量身定制的食物和食谱建议；（c）与医生跟踪和交流FV摄入量。这些发现对于未来基于移动应用程序的电子健康干预措施改善老年人FV摄入量的研究具有重要意义。
