A Proposal To Support Wellbeing in People With Borderline Personality Disorder: Applying Reminiscent Theory in a Mobile App

TL;DR

This paper proposes a reminiscence therapy-based mobile app aimed at improving wellbeing in individuals with Borderline Personality Disorder, extending its potential use to various mental health conditions.

Contribution

It introduces a novel application of reminiscence therapy for BPD and emphasizes user involvement in design to evaluate its effectiveness.

Findings

Potential to improve mood in BPD users

Application design informed by end-user feedback

Extension of reminiscence therapy beyond dementia

Abstract

In this paper the research draws upon reminiscence therapy, which is used in treating dementia, as an applied theory to promote well being in people who experience low moods. The application proposed here aims to promote wellbeing for people suffering from mood disorders and dementia but could potentially be used to enhance wellbeing for many types of users. Use of the application is anticipated to improve mood in a group of users where severe emotional problems are prevalent. The research aims to evaluate the effectiveness of a reminiscence based application in promoting well being in people specifically with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). The long term objective of this research is to establish the effectiveness of reminiscence theory on user groups aside from dementia, particularly other mental illnesses. The research advocates involving end users within the design process both to inform and evaluate the development of a mobile and tablet application.