An electronic diary software for ecological momentary assessment (EMA) in clinical trials

Abstract

Experience sampling is a research technique in which participants record their behaviors and moods in real time in their day-to-day environments. Ecological momentary assessment (EMA) is a refinement of experience sampling in which randomly timed assessments are combined with event-contingent assessments. EMA data are more reliable if obtained with handheld computers than with paper diaries. Robust EMA applications sufficiently flexible and easily adaptable for our various research efforts, including a study of polydrug use we are now undertaking at our outpatient treatment/research clinic, were not available. We developed transactional electronic diary (TED), a highly configurable EMA program. TED provides investigators the capability to conduct close assessment and monitoring of symptoms and intensity of drug withdrawal in participants. Data collected via TED is subsequently incorporated into our human research information system (HuRIS) for further analysis.