Digital overload among college students: Implications for mental health app use

Mental health phone applications (apps) provide cost-effective, easily accessible support for college students, yet long-term engagement is often low. Digital overload, defined as information burden from technological devices, may contribute to disengagement from mental health apps. This study aimed to explore the influence of digital overload and phone use preferences on mental health app use among college students, with the goal of informing how notifications could be designed to improve engagement in mental health apps for this population. A semi-structured interview guide was developed to collect quantitative data on phone use and notifications as well as qualitative data on digital overload and preferences for notifications and phone use. Interview transcripts from 12 college students were analyzed using thematic analysis. Participants had high daily phone use and received large quantities of notifications. They employed organization and management strategies to filter information and mitigate the negative effects of digital overload. Digital overload was not cited as a primary barrier to mental health app engagement, but participants ignored notifications for other reasons. Findings suggest that adding notifications to mental health apps may not substantially improve engagement unless additional factors are considered, such as users’ motivation and preferences.