The Effect of mHealth Interventions on Early Childhood Development: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Objective: Early childhood development shapes lifelong health and learning, with 90% of brain architecture formed by age 5. Mobile health shows promise in this area. We conducted a systematic review to assess mobile health use in early childhood development.

Methods: The review followed PRISMA guidelines, with a comprehensive search of PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science for English-language articles from January 1, 2000, to December 31, 2024. To reduce publication bias, gray literature—including conference proceedings and Cochrane database—was systematically searched. The eligibility criteria were established using the Population, Intervention, Comparison, and Outcome framework, and studies that did not meet the criteria were excluded. Two independent reviewers assessed study quality with the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool.

Results: Nine studies from 2019 to 2022 met the criteria, assessing motor skills (4), cognitive abilities (2), language development (4), and social–emotional aspects (3). One study addressed all four developmental domains, another focused on language and social–emotional development, and the remaining studies examined a single domain. One study utilized social media platforms, while the others used mobile apps. The Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool rated four studies as “good” and five as “moderate.” Only one study was conducted in low- and middle-income countries. All the included studies reported positive impacts of mobile health on developmental domains, some statistically significant. Overall, few studies exist on mobile health in child development, mostly from high-income countries with small samples and laboratory settings. Positive effects were reported across domains, but motor improvements were limited to skills without advancing development levels. Using assistive devices improved outcome accuracy and clarified intervention effects.

Conclusion: Few studies have been conducted in the field of mHealth in ECD. There is a need for further research applying the Nurturing Care Framework (NCF)—particularly in low-income countries—to better understand the effectiveness of mobile health interventions in diverse settings.