» Articles » PMID: 27792475

Participation of African Americans in E-Health and M-Health Studies: A Systematic Review

Overview
Date 2016 Oct 30
PMID 27792475
Citations 33
Authors
Affiliations
Soon will be listed here.
Abstract

Background: African Americans (AA) experience high levels of health disparities for several diseases, yet remain underrepresented in clinical trials and other types of research. The high ownership of smartphones among AA puts them in a unique position to be recruited into e-Health/m-Health interventions.

Objective: This article is a systematic review of the participation of AA in e-Health/m-Health interventions, the diseases/health conditions targeted, and the recruitment and retention strategies used.

Materials And Methods: A systematic review was done with PubMed, PsycINFO, Web of Science, EBSCOhost, and CINAHL databases, as well as hand searches of 14 journals. The search was restricted to studies conducted in the United States and that were published between January 2000 and June 2016. Twenty-three distinct search terms were used.

Results: After removal of duplicates, 565 studies were screened and assessed for eligibility, and 56 met the inclusion criteria. Eight studies had exclusively AA participants. Eighty percent of the studies had female participants. Participants were recruited primarily from clinics/healthcare facilities. Forty-five percent of the studies provided monetary incentives. Only five studies addressed retention of participants. The diseases/health conditions that were studied included overweight/obesity, diabetes, physical activity, cardiovascular conditions, nutrition, prenatal health, and HIV.

Conclusion: There was a low representation of AA in the studies in this review. Opportunities exist to engage AA in e-Health/m-Health research, but researchers must go beyond the traditional one-size-fits-all approach to determine what mixture of incentives and recruitment/retention strategies would work best for a particular health condition, population group, or community.

Citing Articles

Adapting a Mobile Health App for Smoking Cessation in Black Adults With Anxiety Through an Analysis of the Mobile Anxiety Sensitivity Program Proof-of-Concept Trial: Qualitative Study.

Cheney M, Alexander A, Garey L, Gallagher M, Hebert E, Vujanovic A JMIR Form Res. 2025; 9:e53566.

PMID: 39918847 PMC: 11845881. DOI: 10.2196/53566.


An mHealth Intervention With Financial Incentives to Promote Smoking Cessation and Physical Activity Among Black Adults: Protocol for a Feasibility Randomized Controlled Trial.

Alexander A, Businelle M, Cheney M, Cohn A, McNeill L, Short K JMIR Res Protoc. 2025; 14:e69771.

PMID: 39888657 PMC: 11829183. DOI: 10.2196/69771.


"I care about sex, I care about my health": A mixed-methods pre-test of a HIV prevention mobile health app for Black women in the southern United States.

Chandler R, Guillaume D, Francis S, Xue E, Shah K, Parker A PLoS One. 2023; 18(10):e0289884.

PMID: 37851669 PMC: 10584133. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0289884.


An mHealth Platform for People With HIV Receiving Care in Washington, District of Columbia: Qualitative Analysis of Stakeholder Feedback.

Caldwell S, Flickinger T, Hodges J, Waldman A, Garofalini C, Cohn W JMIR Form Res. 2023; 7:e48739.

PMID: 37725419 PMC: 10548330. DOI: 10.2196/48739.


Engagement With Tailored Physical Activity Content: Secondary Findings From the Families Improving Together for Weight Loss Randomized Controlled Trial.

Sweeney A, Wilson D, Resnicow K, Van Horn M, Kitzman H J Med Internet Res. 2023; 25:e42581.

PMID: 37043271 PMC: 10134014. DOI: 10.2196/42581.