Blended face-to-face and web-based smoking cessation treatment (BSCT): a description of patients’ user experience (UX)

Abstract

Blended face-to-face and Web-based treatment is a promising way to deliver smoking cessation therapy. This study describes patients’ user experience (UX) of a blended smoking cessation treatment (BSCT).

Patients’ (n=10) UX was collected by in-depth interviews at an outpatient smoking cessation clinic. Interviews were analyzed applying Hassenzahl’s UX model from a user perspective examining the key elements of UX: standards and expectations, apparent character (pragmatic and hedonic attributes), usage situation, and consequences (appeal, emotions, behavior).

In general, the UX of BSCT was good. Patients had a positive-pragmatic standard and neutral-open expectation towards BSCT, and the pragmatic attributes (usability, utility) of both the Web- and F2F-sessions were mostly positive. However, for the hedonic attributes (stimulation, identification, evocation), F2F-sessions differ from Web-sessions: patients reported lower stimulation for the Web-sessions (“online won’t get through to me”), lower identification (“online is not my style”), and negative evocations (comparing the Web-sessions to e.g. “bookkeeping”). Consequently, and additionally affected by technical incommodities during usage (e.g. Web-sessions could not be done on tablets), the Web-sessions appealed negative. As the emotional and behavioral consequences varied, we ultimately found three combinations (positive, negative, mixed) of appeal, emotions (e.g. satisfaction) and behavior (adherence; quitting).

Although the UX of BSCT is mainly experienced as good, addressing the hedonistic gap within the Web-sessions could further improve UX and ultimately treatment effectiveness.