Understanding human-device interaction patterns within the context of mobile nutrition

Abstract

A number of apps currently exist to aid users in finding a better lifestyle or to control their food intake by having better nutritional advice at their fingertips. The mobile nutrition area is widely popular with thousands of people around the world accessing information related to nutrition and wellbeing. However, mobile nutrition apps still can offer more to their users by providing better overall Human Device Interaction (HDI). As nutrition apps are used daily, it is imperative to ensure that users can easily grasp their concept, thus allowing them to quickly understand and receive the information they require to achieve a better lifestyle. The problem lies with HDI elements associated with these apps. This research paper highlights the problems with HDI in mobile nutrition apps through an investigative survey. The questionnaire based quantitative survey was used to understand the patterns associated with mobile HDI in the nutrition landscape and how the user interacts with the mobile app throughout the nutrition tracking process. Respondents clearly showed that the following main problems: difficult to input information into the mobile app, too time consuming to complete, not motivated in any way and also a poor overall user interface. The survey results have enabled us to conclude a number of points that greatly impact the overall HDI of nutrition apps. This was of great importance as it laid the foundations to investigate and explore further opportunities in this area.