Mobile, Social, and Wearable Computing and the Evolution of Psychological Practice

• Published in: Professional psychology, research and practice Vol. 43; no. 6; pp. 622 - 626
• Main Authors: Morris, Margaret E., Aguilera, Adrian
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Psychological Association 01-12-2012
• Subjects: Activities of daily living; Affective Computing; Classification; Clinical Practice; Clinical trials; Clinics; Computer Applications; Consumer demand; Emotions; Human; Intervention; Mental health; Mobile Applications; Mobile Devices; Mobile Phones; Psychological Assessment; Psychology; Social Media; Technology; Therapeutic Alliance; therapeutic alliance; affective computing; mobile phones; mobile applications; perceptual computing; wearable sensors; social media
• ISSN: 0735-7028; 1939-1323
• DOI: 10.1037/a0029041

Psychological assessment and intervention are extending from the clinic into daily life. Multiple forces are at play: Advances in mobile technology, constrained clinical care, and consumer demand for contextualized, nonstigmatizing, and low-cost alternatives are beginning to change the face of psychological assessment and interventions. Mobile, social, and wearable technologies are now enabling individuals to measure themselves and to integrate myriad forms of help and entertainment. The massive data sets generated by self-tracking of mood and passive sensing of voice, activity, and physiology may eventually reorganize taxonomies of mental health concerns. Compelling mobile therapies will also emerge, involving contextually appropriate, entertaining, and dynamic feedback to provide help in the context of daily life. The efficacy of such applications will be tested through citizen science as well as clinical trials. This article reviews technical advances that can be applied to enhance assessment and intervention and dramatically increase access to psychotherapy. It is recommended that, in addition to exploring clinically oriented products, practitioners should support patients' use of direct-to-consumer applications in ways that align with therapeutic objectives.