Bricker, J., Copeland, W., Mull, K., Zeng, E., Watson, N., Akioka, K., & Heffner, J. (2017). Single-arm trial of the second version of an acceptance & commitment therapy smartphone application for smoking cessation. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 170, 37-42. doi:10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2016.10.029
Background: The first randomized trial of a smartphone application (app) for adult smoking cessation (SmartQuit 1.0) revealed key features that predict cessation. These findings guided the revision of this Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT)-based application (SmartQuit 2.0), which was primarily tested to examine participant receptivity, short-term cessation and reduction, and the relationship between program completion, smoking cessation and reduction. Secondarily, outcomes were descriptively compared with the SmartQuit1.0 trial.
Method: Adult participants (78% female, 25% with high school or less education, 30% unemployed) were recruited into the single-arm pilot trial (N = 99) of SmartQuit 2.0 with a two-month follow-up (85% retention).
Results: Regarding receptivity, 84% of participants were satisfied with SmartQuit 2.0 (vs. 59% for SmartQuit1.0), 73% would recommend it to a friend (vs. 48% for SmartQuit1.0), 81% found the ACT exercises useful for quitting (vs. 44% for SmartQuit1.0). At the 2-month follow-up, the quit rates were 21% for 7-day point prevalence (vs. 23% for SmartQuit1.0), 11% for 30-day point prevalence (vs. 13% for SmartQuit1.0), and 75% of participants reduced their smoking frequency (vs. 57% for SmartQuit1.0). Among program completers (24% of total sample), the quit rates were 33% for 7-day point prevalence, 28% for 30-day point prevalence, and 88% of participants reduced their smoking frequency.
Conclusions: The revised app had high user receptivity, modest quit rates, and high smoking reduction rates. Program completion may be key to boosting the app’s effectiveness.