Metcalf Olivia, Pham Le, Lamb Karen E, Zaloumis Sophie, O'Donnell Meaghan L, Qian Tianchen, Varker Tracey, Cowlishaw Sean, Forbes David
Phoenix Australia-Centre for Posttraumatic Mental Health, Department of Psychiatry, University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia.
Centre for Digital Transformation of Health, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia.
J Trauma Stress. 2025 Apr;38(2):296-304. doi: 10.1002/jts.23126. Epub 2025 Jan 26.
Problematic anger affects up to 30% of individuals who have experienced trauma. Digital mental health approaches, such as ecological momentary assessment (EMA) delivered via smartphone and wearable devices (i.e., wearables), hold significant potential for the development of novel digital technology treatments. The objective of this cohort study was to examine the acceptability, feasibility, and outcomes from 10 days of usage of a digital mental health tool combining EMA and wearable use among trauma-exposed adults with problematic anger. We used mixed methods to examine feasibility and acceptability and explored quantitative changes in mental health symptoms among participants over the study period (N = 98, 80.4% women, M = 38 years). Quantitative and qualitative data revealed that regular EMA combined with a wearable was feasible and acceptable in the sample. We observed reductions in problem anger, p < .001, repeated-measures d (d) = -0.81, 95% CI [-1.04, -0.59]; and posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms, p = .025, d = -0.26, 95% CI [-0.55, -0.03], over the 10 days of monitoring. Qualitative findings suggest that by regularly "checking in" on anger symptoms, participants improved their self-awareness and ability to self-manage their mood. These findings provide valuable learnings for building future personalized digital mental health tools.
问题性愤怒影响着高达30%经历过创伤的个体。数字心理健康方法，如通过智能手机和可穿戴设备（即可穿戴物）进行的生态瞬时评估（EMA），在新型数字技术治疗的开发方面具有巨大潜力。这项队列研究的目的是检验一种结合了EMA和可穿戴设备使用的数字心理健康工具，在有问题性愤怒的创伤暴露成年人群体中使用10天的可接受性、可行性和效果。我们使用混合方法来检验可行性和可接受性，并探讨了研究期间参与者心理健康症状的定量变化（N = 98，80.4%为女性，平均年龄38岁）。定量和定性数据表明，在该样本中，常规的EMA与可穿戴设备相结合是可行且可接受的。在10天的监测期间，我们观察到问题性愤怒有所减少，p <.001，重复测量效应量d（d）= -0.81，95%置信区间[-1.04, -0.59]；创伤后应激障碍症状也有所减轻，p =.025，d = -0.26，95%置信区间[-0.55, -0.03]。定性研究结果表明，通过定期“检查”愤怒症状，参与者提高了自我意识和自我管理情绪的能力。这些发现为构建未来的个性化数字心理健康工具提供了宝贵的经验教训。
