AWARE is an app used by researchers to capture data about human behavior from device hardware and software. AWARE tools are open-source and can be downloaded for free onto your own smartphone as an Android or iOS mobile application. AWARE continuously monitors smartphone activity and directly transmits this activity to a server so that it is made available for researchers.
Android AWARE video instructions
iPhone AWARE video instruction
The Sensors in AWARE detect and measure smartphone data, which is used to generate the features shared with users in the app. When you scan the study QR code in your AWARE setup, the correct sensors will be selected. You do not need to activate or deactivate any sensors in AWARE to get started.
Please see below for the sensors MoodRing requires users to keep activated:
Sensor names in iOS:
(1) Activity Recognition
(2) Battery
(3) Communication
(4) Device Usage
(5) Fused Location
(5) Location
(6) Screen
(7) Timezone
(8) WiFi
Sensor names in Android:
The purpose of the Data Collection feature on your dashboard is to let you know if all of your sensors are syncing, or if 1 or more of your sensors needs to be activated.
If all your sensors are syncing, the icon will be green and you are good to go. If 1 or more sensors are not syncing for a day or more, the icon on your dashboard will turn red.
After 2 days, you will begin to receive daily notifications reminding you to check your AWARE app and turn on the non-syncing sensors and/or manually upload your data.
Low power mode is a feature on some devices that allows the device to use less power and is often recommended by when a device's battery life hits a certain threshold. However, low power mode interferes with AWARE's ability to collect data. We ask that you please try to refrain from using low power mode on your AWARE device for the duration of the study.
To be connected to the study, you will need to add the study URL using the QR code in the AWARE instructions handout (please see step 6 for iPhone or step 10 for android). Tip: It helps to have the QR code pulled up on a separate device (such as a laptop), so that you can easily scan with your mobile device.
To know that you are connected to the study, please check the Study URL field in your AWARE Settings screen (see image below for reference). If this field is blank, it means that you are not connected to our study.
If you followed the steps above and are still not seeing the study URL on the Setting screen and/or do not think you are connected to the study, try restarting your device and re-checking the Study URL field.
Sometimes, if we aren’t getting sensor data from you, we may ask you to manually upload sensor data.
1) To manually upload sensor data, you go into settings and click the icon on the top left (cloud icon with the up arrow going through it, see below)
2) Once you click the cloud icon, you should get the message "do you upload stored sensor data manually?" for which you hit the option "execute"
3) You will see the individual sensors will have a loading icon which will transition into a green check-mark:
4) If you see this message "data upload is completed" that means the sensor data was successfully manually uploaded.
For any questions regarding technical difficulties with the AWARE app, please use the Submit Support Request form at the bottom of this page to reach out to the research team. If you are receiving error messages or dialogue boxes, please take screenshots and email them to sovalab@pitt.edu.
Once you have AWARE running on your device, you may need to edit or update permissions to ensure that communication data is collected.
For Android:
1) Go to Settings and click on Privacy:
2) Select Go To View All Permissions:
3) Select Apps:
4) Select AWARE App:
5) Click on call logs and SMS to make sure they are allowed:
For iOS:
1) Go to Settings and click on Privacy:
2) Make sure that Cellular Data is toggled on:
If your Android device gives you a "Restricted Access" warning for the AWARE app, you will need to permit access through the AWARE App info screen in the settings. You'll see a button on the top right corner of that screen that says "Allow restricted settings." Once you have made that selection, you will need to navigate back to the accessibility screen in your device and turn the accessibility permission on.
Let the study team know! Every time you reinstall the app, you will need to re-enter your Unique ID (the letter/combination given to you at the beginning of the study) which generates a new AWARE Device ID. Make sure you input your Unique ID in the “Device Label” field, or on some phones, the “Device Name”field. Once added, you’ll see the AWARE Device ID field update with a new code. The study team will need this information, so please take a screenshot and email it to sovalab@pitt.edu. Then, rejoin the study by scanning the QR code in the upper right. Do this only after your AWARE Device ID has been updated.
At completion of the study (6 months from enrollment date), you should quit the study in the AWARE app and you may elect to delete the AWARE app from your device altogether. BEFORE quitting the study or deleting the app, please manually sync the data following the instructions outlined above. This will ensure that any data collected while you were active in the study is available to the research team.
In iOS, select Advanced Settings in the AWARE app and then select Quit Study. Once you have successfully quit the study, the Study URL field on the Settings screen of the AWARE app will be blank.
In Android, click on test tube icon in upper right hand corner. On the popup screen, hit the bottom right option in red "Quit Study". You will be prompted with a message asking if you are sure, hit yes.
To delete the AWARE app, follow the same steps you would use to delete any other app from your device.
Request your Unique ID from the research team by emailing sovalab@pitt.edu with your first and last name.