Useful App – What's Up? A Mental Health App Review

This app is rated a 4.5 out of 5. It has well developed sections that provide great pieces of information for the user. While it may appear simple and very basic, I like the idea of trying to keep the app free as much as possible. The password lock can really be helpful for users who use this for their daily tracking of mood, emotions, and habits. This app seems very ideal for adolescent because during this stage youth can experience everyday stressors such as “the daily issues individuals face, such as money problems, traffic difficulties, time pressure, poor sleeping patterns, homework, work conflicts, family coping styles, aggravations from parents, struggles in a relationship, a quarrel with a friend, neighborhood violence, school dangers, and dietary problems” (Laser, J.A. & Nicotera, N.,2021). The app seemed very simple to use although there were some tabs for example “stay in today” it seems like this one needed more development. There is just a picture. It seems it may be intended for a moment when the user is possibly having an episode or hard time and needs some kind of anchor to keep them from spiraling. Instead of having a person tell you that “you’re okay” or “you’re safe” it has an image that tries to play that role. It could use some work. It is very simple and not interactive at all. There could be some calming music playing, as before mentioned needing a sound aspect to the app. Or just more quotes or images that can help someone feel validated or safe in the moment that they are having a hard time. Another thing that they could implement is having a faster way of arriving to that tab versus going through two different buttons to get to it. It almost seems hidden. Perhaps implementing an emergency button for when the user is going through a crisis to reach that page at a moment's notice. They can have it somewhere on the main menu with bright colors to make it stand out. Another critique I would add is changing the targeted age group. I would recommend that the target age group should be 13 years old and above due to the vocabulary level and content of some of the forum posts. I don’t believe the younger users would be able to understand or even relate as they are probably not at the right age to do so. Other than that the app does everything else as intended. It’s definitely a useful tool for those that can utilize it. But I feel further working on the outline of the app and the visual aspect will help it become more intuitive and fun to use.
Review by Jay and DBO on What's Up? A Mental Health App.