User Experience

What is a User Experience rating?

In short, the User Experience rating is an app quality score.

The Mobile App Rating Scale (MARS) was designed by a research team involved in the development and validation of eHealth and mHealth interventions, or ‘eTools’. The scale aims to provide researchers, clinicians and developers with a list of evaluation criteria, and a gradient response scale for their objective evaluation.

There are three main MARS factors:

  1. The MARS mean
    This is the mean of four objective subscales:

    • Engagement
    • Functionality
    • Aesthetics
    • Information
  2. Subjective Quality
  3. Perceived Impact

Subjective Quality and Perceived Impact are based on the raters’ own impression of the eTool, including its usability and perceived effectiveness.

The MARS can be used as an adjunct to qualitative eTool descriptions, to give eTool users an overview of their quality rating. The scale can also help with the ranking of eTools based on their quality. The MARS scale is being used worldwide by eTool evaluation and development projects.

Resources