Development and Initial Validation of a Scale to Measure Engagement with eHealth Technologies

In eHealth, engagement is viewed as an important factor in explaining why interventions are beneficial to some and not to others. However, a shared understanding of what engagement is and how to measure it, is missing. This paper presents the set-up of the development and initial validation of a new scale to measure engagement with eHealth interventions, based on scientific literature and interviews with users and experts. Furthermore, it presents the preliminary results of a systematic review, 11 interviews with engaged users and the first version of the new engagement scale. It is expected that the final scale, which will be based on theoretical and empirical research and focus on the different components of engagement, will enable researchers to investigate what features and forms of technology influence individuals' engagement and thereby pave the way to create more engaging technologies.