Influence of Smart Fitness Devices and Mobile Applications on Perceived Stress Levels of Adults: A United Arab Emirates-Based Study

There has been a rise in the use of technology where fitness businesses and members alike have invested heavily in-home fitness setups. Wearable fitness technology is often seen being worn by consumers, including activity trackers or smartwatches that aid in tracking physical health data. These data can be transferred to mobile health applications (mHealth) stored on smart-phones. There are multiple devices and apps for tracking health and stress, and there seem to be fewer studies to discover which of the mHealth apps or devices is prevalent and has an effect on stress levels in people. The present study is aimed to study the influence of smart fitness devices and apps on the perceived stress levels of adults. Also, the study was determined to find if there exists any difference in stress levels between young adults and adult users. Lastly, this study wanted to find if any difference exists concerning gender differences in stress reduction among fitness device users. A random sampling method was used on 129 subjects who were asked to fill up the 206 questionnaire containing questions related to the usage of fitness devices and apps and the perceived stress scale (PSS) that Sheldon Cohen developed. Pearson’s correlation was used to find a correlation between how the usage of smart fitness devices and apps influences stress levels and regression analysis. Results suggested a weak correlation which implies that there was a decrease in stress levels among users who use smart devices and apps for fitness. Through mean stress scores, we determined that smartwatches and other devices or apps have contributed to reduced stress levels among the subject users. Through z-tests, type three, we found that adults benefited from the fitness devices and apps as they showed relatively lower stress levels than young adults. And there was no significant difference in terms of gender differences among the users. This chapter opens many possibilities where further research can be administered on those suffering from mental or physical illness and how these fitness devices and apps (mHealth) contribute to their stress reduction levels.