December 19, 2012
Research demonstrates that more than 10 million adults annually search for quitting smoking information online, but only a third of searchers reach evidence-based interventions, and even fewer will take advantage of social support recommended by clinical guidelines for treatment. As part of an innovative 3-year project, funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), The Schroeder Institute at Legacy® have developed a new Facebook app that will both help smokers quit as well as provide data about how people quit smoking on social networks like Facebook. UbiQUITous is currently the only evidence-based app on Facebook dedicated to helping users quit smoking. The development of UbiQUITous capitalized on more than a decade of work and experience by Schroeder Institute and Legacy staff, including the design, development and evaluation of the largest and best known online social networks for smoking cessation - BecomeAnEX.org and QuitNet.com.
“Instead of encouraging smokers to join networks of other quitters, UbiQUITous helps smokers build a support network out of their own friends and family on Facebook,” said Dr. Nathan Cobb , lead researcher and developer of the app. “This Facebook-based study is unique in how it will help public health researchers understand how a quitting smoking tool ‘goes viral’ through clusters of smokers online, and what conditions make a public health intervention most likely to spread between individuals.
For More Information:
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/first-ever-evidenced-based-quit-smoking-app-launches-on-facebook-183932931.html
