journal homepage: http://kont.zsf.jcu.cz DOI: 10.32725/kont.2020.026 Mindfulness-based mobile applications for social interaction in people with schizophrenia Cecilia Indri Kurniasari 1 , Sri Padma Sari 2 , Meidiana Dwidiyanti 2 *, Rozzano C. Locsin 3 1 Masters of Nursing Student of Diponegoro University, Semarang, Indonesia 2 Diponegoro University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Nursing, Semarang, Indonesia 3 Visiting Professor at Diponegoro University, Professor of Tokushima University Japan Abstract People with schizophrenia experience limited social interaction because of afective, cognitive, and psychomotor alterations. Te problem of interaction requires intervention to increase their social interaction. Tere is a need for a system that can monitor the development of the interactive social abilities of people with schizophrenia. Te purpose of this study was to determine the impact of mindfulness therapy on the social interaction of people with schizophrenia using a mobile application (SI-DESIS). Fifty-two people with schizophrenia who met the criteria were divided into an intervention group and a control group. Te mindfulness therapy was carried out in six sessions for three weeks. Data were collected using pre-test and post-test scores with the Social Interaction Questionnaire and Behavior Observation Sheet. Te results showed an increase in the level of social interaction for participants who were given the intervention (U = 12,000, p < 0.05). Te rise of social interaction emphasized the stages of mindfulness therapy: the comfort stage and the independently healthy target stage. Mindfulness-based mobile applications are useful to enhance the social interactions of people with schizophrenia. Keywords: Digital; Mental illness; Mindfulness; Mobiles application; Schizophrenia; Social interaction * Author for correspondence: Meidiana Dwidiyanti, Diponegoro University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Nursing, Jl. Prof Sudarto SH, Tembalang Semarang, 50275, Indonesia; e-mail: Mdwidiyanti@gmail.com http://doi.org/10.32725/kont.2020.026 Submitted: 2020-01-23 • Accepted: 2020-07-27 • Prepublished online: 2020-08-10 KONTAKT 22/3: 172–177 • EISSN 1804-7122 • ISSN 1212-4117 © 2020 The Authors. Published by University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, Faculty of Health and Social Sciences. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license. Original research article Introduction Schizophrenia is a mental condition that often occurs in the community. It has two main types of symptoms; positive and negative (Malky, 2016). One of the negative symptoms of schizophrenia is a persistent change in social function. Tis condition inhibits the recovery process, as well as roles and functions in daily activities (Alloy et al., 2004). Te decline in social interaction is experienced by 72% of people with schizo- phrenia (Jumaini et al., 2010). In addition, people with schiz- ophrenia also experience psychomotor disorders in the form of motor retardation (Bervoets et al., 2014). Te surrounding environment such as family, neighbours, and friends also in- fuences the social interaction of people with schizophrenia. Disorders that occur are afective, cognitive, and psychomo- tor, and the absence of positive support from the environment can result in the ability of social interaction of people with schizophrenia to be less active. Tis has an impact on the oc- currence of self-exile, and increases risk of suicide (Ventriglio et al., 2016) and depression (Sari et al., 2017). For individu- als who experience persistent symptoms and mental disorder, personal recovery has become an important target of mental health services internationally (Tomas et al., 2016). Personal recovery can be achieved if people with a mental disorder can be independent and positive (Tomas et al., 2016). Handling social interaction problems in people with schiz- ophrenia can be achieved with psychotherapy and mindfulness therapy (Dekeyser et al., 2008). Mindfulness therapy is use- ful in providing calm, comfort, being aware of and focusing on problems, and helping in solving problems independently (Davis et al., 2007). Mindfulness therapy has been proposed as an alternative to CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy) for use in people with a severe mental illness like schizophrenia who have cognitive impairment or disorganized thinking – as mind- fulness improves emotion regulation (Mistler et al., 2017). So far, the development of mindfulness therapy is not only for direct research but also for indirect research in the form of mobile-based applications. It is supported by a previous study on mindfulness therapy; as one of the holistic therapies devel- oped with mobile technology that afects the recovery process for patients with mental illness (Stjernswärd et al., 2017). Te development of nursing interventions in the form of an an- droid application is a recent form of technological innovation in nursing science (Locsin and Kongsuwan, 2017). Technology in nursing is a development of nursing science based on caring for persons through technological means (Locsin and Kongsu- wan, 2017). Several android applications for mindfulness-based nurs- ing interventions have been developed in Indonesia. One of them is SI-BESUTA (Learning Success Information System with Love), which measures the stress level of nursing students KONTAKT / Journal of nursing and social sciences related to health and illness NURSING