07/16/2025
Smartphones can help people stay healthy by monitoring their sleep, steps and heart rate, but they also can help reveal issues tied to mental health, new research shows.
In a study published in JAMA Network Open, researchers from the University of Michigan, University of Minnesota and University of Pittsburgh used smartphone sensors as silent observers of daily life. These digital footprints tracked simple actions, such as how much we move, sleep or check our phones but also provided surprising insights into how our psychological well-being manifests in everyday routines.
The researchers found that many different mental disorders share similar behavior patterns, like staying home more, sleeping late and not charging phones often. Such behaviors may show someone’s level of something called the “p-factor,” which links many mental health issues.
Aidan Wright, professor of psychology and the Phil F. Jenkins Research Professor of Depression at the University of Michigan’s Eisenberg Family Depression Center , said the team determined that some behaviors, like making fewer phone calls or walking less, matched specific problems like being less social or feeling sick.
“These findings suggest that major forms of mental illness are detectable from smartphone sensors, indicating that this technology could potentially be used for symptom monitoring and research on wide-ranging psychiatric problems,” said Wright, the study’s senior author.
https://news.umich.edu/wellness-at-your-fingertips-mental-health-support-via-smartphone/
