Digital Tools as Parental Support—A Study Protocol Describing Prospective Development and Exploration of Two Digital Tools for Parents

Abstract

Background: The access to digital tools for parents is increasing, and further exploration is needed to gain knowledge about parents' experiences in using such tools, for example, when preparing for childbirth and parenthood. This study protocol describes a prospective study that will explore serious games as digital tools for parental support, and both parents' and healthcare professionals' views will be included. The objectives of the prospective study are to explore two different serious games: (1) Childbirth Journey (Swedish: Förlossningsresan), relating to pregnancy, childbirth and parenthood; and (2) Interplay (Swedish: Samspel), relating to parental couple relationships and parenthood.Methods: An intervention study will be conducted. The study will include four different sub-studies (A–D) with both qualitative and quantitative methods and a longitudinal design. Both parents (A, B and D) and healthcare professionals (C) will be included, and data will be collected through interviews (A–C) and repeated web-based questionnaires (D). Data will be analysed using phenomenography and qualitative content analysis (A–C), and descriptive and analytical analyses will be performed for comparisons and associations (D).Discussion: The value of monitoring and reporting on developments and trends in digital innovation for public health has been stipulated by the World Health Organization. The prospective study will contribute further knowledge about multidisciplinary development of digital tools as professional support for parents, as well as knowledge about parents' and healthcare professionals' experiences using digital tools concerning pregnancy, labour, parenthood and parental couple relationships.Trial Registration: This study was retrospectively registered (02/10/2020) within the ISRCTN with ID: ISRCTN18017741. http://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN18017741.

Expecting parents’ perceptions of the digital parental support “childbirth journey” constructed as a serious game—an intervention study

“…In this respect, a “think aloud research” approach could be appropriate. The strengths of this study, on the other hand, are that, in the study protocol for the larger research project, Digital parental support, 19 it was assumed that the intervention could be experienced by the participants as time consuming. On the contrary, the participants perceived the intervention to be time saving instead.…”

“…This study was derived from a larger research study that included mixed methods with both inductive and deductive approaches. The current study constituted “ study A ,” as described in the study protocol by Bäckström et al, 19 and focused on an intervention, the Childbirth Journey, for expecting parents. For this study, an explorative design, qualitative methods, and an inductive approach were used, and the data were collected through interviews with expecting parents who had received the intervention described below.…”

“… 18 With these aspects in mind, we developed a serious game that included medical information for parental support. 19 Serious games were described by Stokes 20 as games designed to entertain players while simultaneously providing education and training or encouraging behavioral changes. Hence, the serious game developed for this study, the Childbirth Journey, was intended to provide expecting parents with an interactive narrative describing normal pregnancy, birth, and labor.…”

In the need of a digital cicerone in healthcare? – Guidance for parents

“…This study was part of a larger research project, “Digital parental support,” which includes explorative and mixed methods studies and inductive and deductive approaches. Within the larger research project, different interventions, including digital parental support developed as serious games, will be explored [ 6 ]. The present study comprised one part of a preliminary study aimed at broadening knowledge about digital parental support.…”

“…For example, with a technological design that accounts for and resolves discrepancies in communication between parent and child, and the complex emotions attributable to parents’ daily life schedules, digital tools may support parent–child relations [ 2 ]. Therefore, digital tools may provide a virtual space that invites future parents to “weave together an unusually fine fabric that will embrace their children, a matrix or a nest in which the newborn can then land softly, warmly and safely” ( [ 6 ], p 7). This metaphor is more than just an illustration of interpersonal space between two adults; it may also serve as a metaphor for their own transition to parental roles.…”