To examine the usability of two smoking cessation apps, Quit Journey, a newly developed app, and QuitGuide, a benchmark app, among young adults who smoked and were socioeconomically disadvantaged, as a primary target population for smoking cessation efforts. Ten current cigarette smokers aged 18–29 years who were neither four-year college graduates nor enrollees participated in virtual think-aloud 1-hour usability sessions. Sessions were held on GoTo Meeting, audio- and screen-recorded, and transcribed verbatim. Participants completed tasks on simulated versions of each app. We assessed task completion success rates, time-to-completion in seconds, and post-testing usability measures (e.g., System Usability Scale SUS). We used deductive thematic analysis to code qualitative participant feedback for constructs from the Second Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology and sentiment. For Quit Journey, task completion rates averaged 55.17% and time-to-completion ranged from 7.00 to 69.00 s. For QuitGuide, completion rates averaged 80.64% and time-to-completion ranged from 4.00 to 54.00 s. SUS scores averaged 69.00 and 81.87 for Quit Journey and QuitGuide, respectively. Participants’ feedback focused mainly on perceived effort and usefulness of apps’ features. Usability testing revealed deviations from usability guidelines (e.g., confirming user-input), resulting in lower task completion rates and longer completion times, especially for Quit Journey. Resolving usability issues identified in this testing round will help improve user experiences in future iterations of Quit Journey. Iterative usability testing is critical to optimize the effectiveness, efficiency, and user satisfaction of smoking cessation apps and should be integral to their development.
Wakeman et al. (Fri,) studied this question.