Safe Sex Messages Within Dating and Entertainment Smartphone Apps: A Review.
BACKGROUND
Smartphone apps provide a new platform for entertainment, information distribution, and health promotion activities, as well as for dating and casual sexual encounters. Previous research has shown high acceptability of sexual health interventions via smartphone apps; however, sexual health promotion apps were infrequently downloaded and underused. Integrating sexual health promotion into established apps might be a more effective method.


OBJECTIVE
The objective of our study was to critically review popular sex-related apps and dating apps, in order to ascertain whether they contain any sexual health content.


METHODS
Part 1: In January 2015, we used the term "sexual" to search for free apps in the Apple iTunes store and Android Google Play store, and categorized the sexual health content of the 137 apps identified. Part 2: We used the term "dating" to search for free geosocial-networking apps in the Apple iTunes and Android Google Play stores. The apps were downloaded to test functionality and to determine whether they included sexual health content.


RESULTS
Part 1: Of the 137 apps identified, 15 (11.0%) had sexual health content and 15 (11.0%) contained messages about sexual assault or violence. The majority of the apps did not contain any sexual health content. Part 2: We reviewed 60 dating apps: 44 (73%) targeting heterosexual users, 9 (15%) targeting men who have sex with men (MSM), 3 (5%) targeting lesbian women, and 4 (7%) for group dating. Only 9 dating apps contained sexual health content, of which 7 targeted MSM.


CONCLUSIONS
The majority of sex-related apps and dating apps contained no sexual health content that could educate users about and remind them of their sexual risks. Sexual health practitioners and public health departments will need to work with app developers to promote sexual health within existing popular apps. For those apps that already contain sexual health messages, further study to investigate the effectiveness of the content is needed.
Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.|Austin Hospital, Austin Health, Heidelberg, Australia.
Evelyn Tzu-Yen
http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8737-2445
ET
Huang
Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.|Melbourne Sexual Health Centre, Alfred Health, Carlton, Australia.
Henrietta
http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3013-7721
H
Williams
Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
Jane S
http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9329-8501
JS
Hocking
Centre for Population Health, Burnet Institute, Melbourne, Australia.|Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.
Megan Sc
http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3136-6761
MS
Lim
STDs; mHealth; mobile apps; mobile health; sexual health; sexually transmitted diseases