A Scoping Review of the Use of Log Data for Evaluating Mobile Apps: Exploring Implications for mHealth Apps

Abstract

There is a growing trend in the potential benefits and application of log data to evaluate mHealth Apps. However, the process by which log data is used to derive insights remains unstructured, resulting in the underutilization of mHealth data. We aimed to explore extant literature and guidance through a scoping review on how log data analysis can be used to generate valuable insights in support of the evaluation of mobile Apps. The scoping review followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) guidelines for a scoping review. The Scopus database and grey literature (through a Google search) delivered 105 articles, and we applied inclusion and exclusion criteria to retain 33 articles in the sample for analysis and synthesis. This scoping review sought to identify how log data are used for mobile App evaluations. By highlighting the existing trends found in literature, identifying the similarities and differences between mHealth and General App analyses, and categorizing the indicators, insights, and improvements, this study contributes to the existing knowledge base of mHealth evaluations and future standardizations. The concepts and categories identified by this review are combined to form a proposed conceptual framework that will be refined and incorporated into future research toward addressing the gap identified in the current literature.

A scoping review of challenges and opportunities of assessments in higher education

“…The review protocol defines the eligibility criteria used for identifying and selecting relevant literature and the search terms, screening process, and codes for the data extraction (Van Schalkwyk et al, 2022).…”