OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to develop a framework for assessing smartphone app usage among people living with cancer and their caregivers.
METHODS: The frequency and duration of use were compared based on manual data extraction from two previous studies and the newly developed Assessment of Data Usage of Cancer e-Interventions (ADUCI) Framework.
RESULTS: Manual extraction demonstrated that 279 logins occurred compared with 241 when the ADUCI Framework was applied. The frequency of use in each section of the app also decreased when the ADUCI Framework was used. The total duration of use was 91,256 seconds (25.3 hours) compared with 53,074 seconds (14.7 hours) when using the ADUCI Framework. The ADUCI Framework identified 38 logins with no navigation, and there were 15 discrepancies in the data where time on a specific page of the app exceeded the login time. Practice recommendations to improve user engagement and capturing usage data include tracking data use in external websites, having a login function on apps, creating a five-star page rating functionality, using the ADUCI Framework to thoroughly clean usage data, and validating the Framework between expected and observed use.
CONCLUSIONS: Applying the ADUCI Framework may eliminate errors and allow for more accurate analysis of usage data in e-research projects. The Framework can also improve the process of capturing usage data by providing a guide for usage data analysis to facilitate evidence-based assessment of user engagement with apps.