Table 3.
More detailed information about the selected Ecological Momentary Intervention studies.
| Authors | Name | Sample | Intervention | Duration | Prompts | Sampling Schema | Sensor(s) | Primary Outcome(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| [61] | Mobylize! | MDD (n = 7), with different comorbidities | Mobylize! is a context-aware system, composed of three main elements: (1) A mobile application for the collection of self-reports; (2) a website with feedback and theoretical lessons; (3) periodic contacts with trained coaches | 8 weeks | 5/day | Randomized | 38 concurrent sensors integrated in the phone | Mobylize! significantly reduced depressive symptoms. Predictive models did not reach high levels of accuracy, especially for mood. |
| [62] | PsyMate | MDD (n = 102): Experimental condition (n = 33), pseudo-experimental condition (n = 36), control condition (n = 33) | Daily assessment of self-reports and weekly EMA-derived feedback through face-to-face sessions | 3 days per week, for 6 weeks | 10/day | Semi-randomized | No | The use of EMA-derived feedback as a complementary intervention to pharmacological treatment significantly decreased depressive symptoms. These improvements were also maintained over time. |
| [63] | PsyMate | MDD (n = 102): Experimental condition (n = 33), pseudo-experimental condition (n = 36), control condition (n = 33) | Daily assessment of self-reports and weekly EMA-derived feedback through face-to-face sessions | 3 days per week, for 6 weeks | 10/day | Semi-randomized | No | The use of Psymate as a technique of self-monitoring could improve patients’ feelings of empowerment. |
| [64] | PsyMate | MDD (n = 102): Experimental condition (n = 33), pseudo-experimental condition (n = 36), control condition (n = 33) | Daily assessment of self-reports and weekly EMA-derived feedback through face-to-face sessions | 3 days per week, for 6 weeks | 10/day | Semi-randomized | No | Face-to-face EMA-derived feedback sessions did not increase the rate of PA experienced during or shortly after the intervention. |
| [65] | Medlink | MDD (n = 8) | Medlink is a mobile application delivering psychological support to MDD patients. The application provides users with: (1) psychoeducation; (2) weekly symptom assessment; (3) medication adherence monitoring; (4) monthly communication with a professional based on the previous points | 4 weeks | 1/week | Not specified | No | Medlink was positively evaluated by participants, especially regarding the weekly psychoeducation lessons. Depression severity of participants significantly decreased over the course of the experiment. |
| [66] | Help4Mood | MDD (n = 28): Experimental condition (n = 14) and control condition (n = 14) | Web platform providing daily assessment of symptoms, self-monitoring, and tailored activities. The delivered content is created in response to the user’s actions through a virtual agent | About 5 weeks | CESD- VAS-VA: 1/day | Not specified | Accelerometer and acoustic speech analysis | Only half of the participants used Help4Mood regularly. Significant changes in depressive symptoms were observed only among regular users. |
| PHQ-9: 1/week | ||||||||
| [67] | PsyMate | MDD (n = 102): Experimental condition (n = 33), pseudo-experimental condition (n = 36), control condition (n = 33) | Daily assessment of self-reports and weekly EMA-derived feedback through face-to-face sessions | 3 days per week, for 6 weeks | 10/day | Semi-randomized | No | The use of EMA-derived feedback decreased depressive symptoms and improved maladaptive behaviours. |
| [68] | PsyMate | MDD (n = 79): Experimental condition (n = 25), pseudo-experimental condition (n = 30), control condition (n = 24) | Daily assessment of self-reports and weekly EMA-derived feedback through face-to-face sessions | 3 days per week, for 6 weeks | 10/day | Semi-randomized | No | The use of a self-monitoring EMA improves negative emotion differentiation. |
MDD: major depressive disorder; PA: positive affect; CESD-VAS-VA: brief visual analogue scale version of the Center of Epidemiological Studies Depression. Scale; PHQ-9: Patient Health Questionnaire.