Sousa Basto Pedro, Ferreira Priscila
NIPE, EEG, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, Braga, 4710-057, Portugal.
BMC Health Serv Res. 2025 Mar 10;25(1):359. doi: 10.1186/s12913-025-12489-z.
This paper studies the role of mobile applications in promoting physical activity and user loyalty to them. In doing so, our study offers fresh insights into the role of mobile applications in promoting physical activity and healthier lifestyles, filling gaps in the existing body of research.
A non-probability purposive sample of adults who engage in physical exercise and use monitoring apps was selected, and semi-structured interviews were used to collect information.
Our findings are suggestive that (i) physical exercise is more strongly associated with the continuous use of applications than with specific loyalty strategies; (ii) widespread use of apps that record and display historical results can boost regular physical activity, as users are motivated to surpass their previous outcomes. These results support the principle that 'more is better' in practice and intensity, suggesting that mobile technologies should be integrated into national health plans.
Mobile technologies should be encouraged by public policies, as these tools offer an accessible alternative for promoting public health. Policies could subsidize or facilitate the development of applications that integrate self-monitoring and personalized health plans aligned with public health guidelines. They could also include educational campaigns informing the population about these technologies' benefits and explaining how to use them to improve physical and mental health.
本文研究移动应用程序在促进体育活动以及用户对其忠诚度方面的作用。在此过程中，我们的研究为移动应用程序在促进体育活动和更健康生活方式方面的作用提供了新的见解，填补了现有研究的空白。
选取了有体育锻炼习惯且使用监测应用程序的成年人作为非概率性目的样本，并通过半结构化访谈收集信息。
我们的研究结果表明：（i）体育锻炼与应用程序的持续使用之间的关联比与特定忠诚度策略的关联更强；（ii）广泛使用记录和展示历史结果的应用程序可以促进定期体育活动，因为用户有动力超越自己之前的成绩。这些结果在实践和强度上支持了“越多越好”的原则，表明移动技术应融入国家健康计划。
公共政策应鼓励使用移动技术，因为这些工具为促进公众健康提供了一种便捷的选择。政策可以补贴或促进开发整合自我监测和符合公共卫生指南的个性化健康计划的应用程序。政策还可以开展教育活动，向民众宣传这些技术的益处，并解释如何使用它们来改善身心健康。
