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JMIR Formative Research

Process evaluations, early results, and feasibility/pilot studies of digital and non-digital interventions

Editor-in-Chief:

Amaryllis Mavragani, PhD, Scientific Editor at JMIR Publications, Canada


Impact Factor 2.4 More information about Impact Factor CiteScore 4.2 More information about CiteScore

JMIR Formative Research publishes peer-reviewed, openly accessible papers containing results from process evaluations, feasibility/pilot studies and other kinds of formative research and preliminary results. While the original focus was on the design of medical- and health-related research and technology innovations, JMIR Formative Research publishes studies from all areas of medical and health research.

Formative research is research that occurs before a program is designed and implemented, or while a program is being conducted. Formative research can help

  • define and understand populations in need of an intervention or public health program
  • create programs that are specific to the needs of those populations
  • ensure programs are acceptable and feasible to users before launching
  • improve the relationship between users and agencies/research groups
  • demonstrate the feasibility, use, satisfaction with, or problems with a program before large-scale summative evaluation (looking at health outcomes)

Many funding agencies will expect some sort of pilot/feasibility/process evaluation before funding a larger study such as a Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT).

Formative research should be an integral part of developing or adapting programs and should be used while the program is ongoing to help refine and improve program activities. Thus, formative evaluation can and should also occur in the form of a process evaluation alongside a summative evaluation such as an RCT.

JMIR Formative Research fills an important gap in the academic journals landscape, as it publishes sound and peer-reviewed formative research that is critical for investigators to apply for further funding, but that is usually not published in outcomes-focused medical journals aiming for impact and generalizability.

Summative evaluations of programs and apps/software that have undergone a thorough formative evaluation before launch have a better chance to be published in high-impact flagship journals; thus, we encourage authors to submit - as a first step - their formative evaluations in JMIR Formative Research (and their evaluation protocols to JMIR Research Protocols). 

JMIR Formative Research is indexed in MEDLINEPubMed, PubMed CentralDOAJ, Scopus, Sherpa/Romeo, EBSCO/EBSCO Essentials, and the Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI).

JMIR Formative Research received a 2025 Impact Factor of 2.4, ranking Q2 in Health Care Sciences & Services (97/194).

JMIR Formative Research received a Scopus CiteScore of 4.2 (2025), placing it in the 68th percentile (149/466) as a second quartile (Q2) journal in the field of Medicine, and in the 52nd percentile (81/168) as a second quartile (Q2) journal in the field of Health Informatics. 


Recent Articles

Child's finger points to a "Höher Hand" (Higher Hand) scale on a tablet.
Formative Evaluation of Digital Health Interventions

Digital health offers opportunities to facilitate symptom assessments and communication for children with cancer, particularly after discharge. However, access to these tools must be established to ensure that they effectively support the user. PicPecc (Pictorial Support in Person-Centered Care for Children) is a mobile health tool developed to enable children to remotely assess symptoms and communicate with health care professionals. Understanding access to PicPecc is essential for evaluating its use in pediatric oncology.

Doctor presenting medical information, including DNA and a plus sign, to an audience.
Formative Evaluation of Digital Health Interventions

Medical interview training faces limitations in both implementation and evaluation. While generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) offers a potential solution, it remains unclear whether reasoning-oriented models improve evaluation, particularly for the Japanese language.

Doctor reviewing eye scans on computer monitor in an office
Development and Evaluation of Research Methods, Instruments and Tools

Optic disc tilt is a morphological change in myopic eyes that complicates clinical interpretation and artificial intelligence (AI)–based analysis of fundus images. Accurate detection of optic disc tilt is necessary to avoid misinterpretation of disc morphology and enhance diagnostic reliability across different disease types.

Woman in hospital bed wearing VR headset with tranquil forest scene
Formative Evaluation of Digital Health Interventions

Postoperative pain and anxiety remain common concerns after minimally invasive gynecologic surgery despite advances in surgical techniques and analgesic strategies. Virtual reality (VR) has been investigated as a potential nonpharmacological intervention for pain management; however, evidence in gynecologic postoperative settings is limited.

Elderly woman frowning while looking at phone in bedroom
Formative Evaluation of Digital Health Interventions

Depression in older adults is often underdiagnosed due to atypical symptom presentation and generational stigma, leading to delayed intervention. Early identification of individuals at risk of developing elevated depressive symptoms is therefore critical, but traditional approaches show limited predictive accuracy. To date, no study has applied machine learning (ML) models to predict clinically significant depressive symptoms at 2-year follow-up in older adults in the United Kingdom using data from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA). Moreover, the impact of encoding strategies for categorical health care variables has not been examined.

Doctor touching digital screen with medical images and brain diagram
Formative Evaluation of Digital Health Interventions

The rapid integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and medical big data into health care is transforming diagnosis, treatment planning, and research. However, formal education in these areas remains limited in undergraduate medical curricula, particularly in China.

Person in white lab coat holding smartphone, likely in medical office
Development and Evaluation of Research Methods, Instruments and Tools

Pneumonia remains the leading cause of mortality in individuals aged 5 years or younger globally, with India bearing a disproportionately high burden. The introduction of the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) in India necessitated innovative approaches to support frontline health workers (FLHWs), particularly in remote settings. To address this, a customizable WhatsApp-based PCV chatbot was developed as a complementary tool to traditional training and reference materials.

Healthcare professional records patient information for an elderly couple.
Formative Evaluation of Digital Health Interventions

Recovery support services (RSS) are an evidence-based approach to support recovery from substance use disorders, most often composed of peer-to-peer support, referrals to housing, job training, and other forms of prosocial engagement and activities. During the COVID-19 pandemic, RSS providers quickly converted in-person services to digital delivery to avoid disruption. It is unclear if this rapid conversion impacted the delivery of services or if this delivery model could enhance RSS reach and uptake more generally by extending the reach of RSS providers and offering an alternative delivery method and access point.

Young woman with headscarf holding a mug by the window
Development and Evaluation of Research Methods, Instruments and Tools

Cancer survivors often experience complex and coexisting emotions throughout diagnosis, treatment, and posttreatment life. Emotion classification of patient narratives may help in understanding survivorship experiences; however, evidence remains limited for multidimensional classification using cancer survivor interview narratives.

Elderly hands using a smartphone, showing a finger touching the screen.
Formative Evaluation of Digital Health Interventions

The rapid growth of digital technologies has transformed daily activities, health management, and social interaction. Older adults, however, continue to face challenges in adopting and using these tools due to limited previous exposure, age-related sensory or cognitive decline, and low digital confidence. In Brazil, internet access among adults aged 60 years or older has increased, yet digital exclusion persists, worsening health disparities. Mobile health (mHealth) apps offer a potential strategy to promote digital inclusion, strengthen digital competencies, and support healthy aging. Nonetheless, studies show that culturally adapted, multidisciplinary interventions for this group remain scarce and are rarely assessed through both quantitative and qualitative methods.

Woman on couch with laptop and phone, working from home.
Formative Evaluation of Non-Ehealth Innovations

Office work is increasingly carried out outside conventional office settings, particularly during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. This highlights the need to understand the complexity of aspects that may influence health across different office work environments.

Preprints Open for Peer Review

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