Texting may be a beneficial mHealth tool for mental health treatment, according to a new study, "Cell phone ownership and use among mental health outpatients in the USA," conducted by researchers from the School of Computing at Clemson University, School of Informatics and Computing at Indiana University, and the Centerstone Research Institute in Nashville.
The technology is a popular form of communication among mental health patients; downloading apps for treatment ranks on a much lower scale, according to the study published at SpringerLink.
"Texting may be a feasible form of treatment aid for those with mental illness and may be useful as a supplementary treatment for those with low income or little to no access to treatment," state the authors, who recommend further research on privacy measures regarding texting and exploring what mHealth treatment would prove the most effective.
The research team surveyed 325 patients at community-based outpatient clinics to assess cellphone ownership and use. One trend noted by the researchers is that mental health patients share mobile phones more than non-patients, which leads to the need to further investigate privacy and security aspects with texting. Study