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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

Elderly man in distress, head in hands, by bedside table with framed photo
Formative Evaluation of Non-Ehealth Innovations

In older adults with chronic constipation, symptoms of defecation difficulty often persist despite improvements in bowel movement frequency. However, constipation-related symptoms have rarely been examined as independent outcomes.

Young woman checks heart rate on phone app while holding medication
Formative Evaluation of Digital Health Interventions

Heart failure is a chronic condition that significantly impacts patients’ quality of life and increases health care burden. Effective self-monitoring and lifestyle modification are essential components of heart failure management and can support improved health outcomes. Mobile health technologies, such as smartphone apps, are increasingly used to assist patients with heart failure in self-management. However, evidence regarding patient engagement, user experience, and the effectiveness of these mobile health tools remains limited and continues to evolve.

Man with glucose monitor checks phone in modern living room
Formative Evaluation of Digital Health Interventions

The current level of insulin knowledge, attitudes, and practices of patients self-administering their first insulin injection needs to be improved. There is an emerging need to develop a program for patients self-administering their first insulin injection based on the e-coach model derived from the temporal self-regulation theory.

Medical supplies: stethoscope, laptop, notebook, pen, and face mask
Formative Evaluation of Non-Ehealth Innovations

Understanding how medical students learn is critical for improving teaching strategies in clinical education. Despite the widespread use of learning style frameworks, such as visual, aural, read/write, and kinesthetic (VARK), evidence from sub-Saharan Africa remains limited, and the use of learning style approaches is debated in the literature. In clinical and health sciences education, aligning teaching with learners’ preferences can enhance knowledge retention, procedural competence, and ultimately the quality of patient care.

Woman with pink headscarf smiles at support group of women
Development and Evaluation of Research Methods, Instruments and Tools

Sleep disturbances and low physical activity are common among breast cancer (BC) survivors and are associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Given the increased access to technological devices and the growing popularity of SMS text messaging–based mobile health interventions, these tools have the potential to both address sleep disturbances and promote physical activity in a scalable and cost-effective way. To understand and make effective use of these tools, it is important to consider the preferences of BC survivors with sleep disturbances, including how SMS text messaging–based mobile health interventions could deliver interventions involving physical activity and sleep hygiene.

Person viewing "RecoverySupport" app on smartphone with form fields for login
Pilot studies (ehealth)

Optimizing recovery following breast cancer surgery is critical for restoring usual function, minimizing complications, and enabling timely initiation of adjuvant therapies. Enhanced Recovery After Surgery protocols are internationally endorsed recommendations and include patient-led behaviors such as early mobilization, early oral intake of fluids and food, postoperative rehabilitation exercises, and multimodal pain management. However, adherence to these behaviors is often suboptimal, and strategies to support patients are limited. Digital health interventions (DHIs) may offer scalable solutions.

Person holds smartphone displaying "Way To Health" app with stethoscope logo.
Formative Evaluation of Digital Health Interventions

Out-of-pocket (OOP) costs pose a significant barrier to participating in cancer clinical trials (CCTs). Financial reimbursement programs (FRPs) that reduce the burden of OOP costs can support participation in CCTs if the information is readily available to participants at the time of enrollment. Prior studies have shown the importance and impact of FRPs, but despite improvements, significant barriers still remain.

Abstract visualization of a human brain with glowing neural pathways
Formative Evaluation of Digital Health Interventions

Symptom-based localization of brainstem ischemia is challenging because of the anatomical complexity of the brainstem and the nonspecific overlap of clinical syndromes. Whether large language models (LLMs) can meaningfully assist in this task remains uncertain.

Woman in yellow shirt using smartphone
Pilot studies (ehealth)

Ecological momentary assessment (EMA) enables repeated, real-time measurement of emotional states, behaviors, and contextual exposures in individuals’ daily lives. Although EMA has been increasingly used in health and behavioral research, evidence regarding the feasibility, compliance, and acceptability of smartphone-based EMA among older adults in Asian settings remains limited.

Person's finger on a smartphone screen displaying a WhatsApp chat with "RESEP health" logo and Zulu text.
Formative Evaluation of Digital Health Interventions

Tuberculosis is a leading cause of death in South Africa, with poor adherence undermining treatment success. Findings from recent research on the impact of mHealth (mobile health) interventions on tuberculosis treatment outcomes show promise, yet many interventions remain untested in African contexts. Rising smartphone ownership in South Africa enables more complex mHealth interventions, offering an opportunity to deploy behavioral tools within high-burden, resource-constrained settings.

Doctors discussing patient vital signs on computer monitor in hospital
Formative Evaluation of Digital Health Interventions

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a frequent and serious complication among hospitalized patients, particularly in critical care settings, where its incidence can exceed 50%. AKI is associated with increased mortality, prolonged hospitalization, dialysis dependence, and higher health care costs. Although the KDIGO (Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes) guidelines emphasize supportive care, hemodynamic optimization, and avoidance of nephrotoxins, their implementation remains inconsistent, partly due to the lack of timely risk stratification. Recent advances in artificial intelligence have enhanced early prediction and detection of AKI, offering new opportunities to improve patient outcomes and intensive care unit (ICU) efficiency. The U-Care Renal Platform (UCRP; U-Care Medical S.r.l), a Conformité Européenne (CE)–marked artificial intelligence–powered medical device, integrates directly with the ICU electronic health record to continuously analyze patient data and predict the risk of moderate or severe AKI within 24 hours, providing actionable, guideline-based recommendations. While the predictive performance of UCRP has been validated previously, its real-world impact on clinical and operational outcomes in the ICU remains underexplored.

Preprints Open for Peer Review

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