The following publications and official sources provide background on digital mental-health technologies, psychological support, privacy, manipulative design, clinical evidence and regulation. The published MHTS v1.0 document remains the authoritative source for the seven requirements themselves.
MHTS
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Mental Health Technology Standards (MHTS). Standards v1.0. International Mental Health Infrastructures (IMHI) Group.
The official publication establishing the seven structural and ethical standards.
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Mental Health Technology Standards (MHTS). Compliance Assessment. International Mental Health Infrastructures (IMHI) Group.
The official online resource for evaluating technologies against the published MHTS requirements.
Psychological Support & Safety
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World Health Organization, War Trauma Foundation and World Vision International. Psychological First Aid: Guide for Field Workers. 2011.
A framework for humane, supportive and practical assistance following extremely distressing events. Relevant to dignity, safety, immediate needs and appropriate access to support.
Ethical Technology & Manipulative Design
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Federal Trade Commission. Bringing Dark Patterns to Light. 2022.
A US Federal Trade Commission staff report examining deceptive and manipulative digital interface practices and their implications for consumer choice. Relevant to psychological manipulation, commercial incentives and engagement design.
Digital Mental Health Evaluation
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American Psychiatric Association. The App Evaluation Model.
A professional framework for examining mental-health applications, including accessibility, privacy, security, clinical foundation, usability and data integration.
https://www.psychiatry.org/psychiatrists/practice/mental-health-apps/the-app-evaluation-model
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International Organization for Standardization. ISO/TS 82304-2:2021: Health Software, Part 2: Health and Wellness Apps, Quality and Reliability.
A technical specification establishing quality requirements for health applications and defining a health-app quality label.
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National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Evidence Standards Framework for Digital Health Technologies.
An evidence framework intended to help evaluate digital-health technologies according to their functions and intended purposes.
Medical-Device Regulation
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Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Digital Mental Health Technology: Qualification and Classification. 2025.
UK regulatory guidance concerning the characterisation of digital mental-health technologies and whether their intended purpose and functionality bring them within medical-device requirements.
Privacy & Data Protection
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Information Commissioner's Office (ICO). What Are the Rules on Special Category Data?
Official UK guidance explaining legal requirements concerning sensitive personal data, including health information.
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Information Commissioner's Office (ICO). Introduction to Anonymisation.
Official UK guidance explaining the distinction between identifiable, pseudonymised and effectively anonymised information, including risks associated with re-identification.
Mental-Health Technology Governance
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Manion A, Faveri B, Marchant GE. Mental Health App Governance: International Landscape, Gaps, and Soft Law Recommendations. Jurimetrics. 2025;65:97–138.
An analysis of hard law and international standards relevant to mental-health apps, concluding that such apps are severely under-governed and that most existing standards are not specific to mental-health apps.
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Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care. National Safety and Quality Digital Mental Health Standards. 2020.
Voluntary national standards describing the governance, consumer-partnership and model-of-care processes expected of Australian digital mental-health service providers.
https://www.safetyandquality.gov.au/national-standards/digital-mental-health-standards
Psychological Vulnerability & Persuasion
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Doroc K, Yadav N, Murawski C. Acute Stress Impairs Decision-Making at Varying Levels of Decision Complexity. Communications Psychology. 2025.
Experimental evidence that acute stress can reduce decision quality.
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Das E, de Wit JBF, Stroebe W. Fear Appeals Motivate Acceptance of Action Recommendations: Evidence for a Positive Bias in the Processing of Persuasive Messages. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. 2003;29(5):650–664.
Three experiments demonstrating how perceived vulnerability to a health threat can increase persuasion.
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Paterson J, Ananthapadmanaban SM. Data Privacy and Consumer Protection Practices of Automated Mental Health, Wellbeing and Mindfulness Apps. Centre for AI and Digital Ethics, University of Melbourne. 2023.
Research examining consumer protection, privacy and manipulative practices in mental-health apps.