This is exactly the reason that I wrote my post about applications being researched based vs. actually researched themselves. Also, that the apps do what they state that they do. This also reminds me of when I was researching different assessments in college.
I know that this comment is a few weeks after you posted this, but I agree that it is important to question each and every app, or product for that matter. Also, I do agree that it is unprofessional for a company or anyone in it to rate an app/product/write a product review on another site (unless it is an interview or information release) no matter what business you are in, especially if that brings your rating percentage up. That would be like if a CEO wrote a review and had each of its employees write a positive review as well – misleading. It is hard to do what you did, but I agree that it is definitely something to think about. I actually did see the reviews on iTunes right after I read your post and I wonder how many other companies have done this on iTunes, Amazon, and other places.
We ended up having a big discussion about apps/research on SLPs Talk Apps on Facebook. A lot was brought up about how we have all been trained in evidence based practice and how apps are tools just like any other product and we need to make the decisions ourselves. The problem is, how can we make that decision when the apps are pricey, the product previews are only 3-4 slides, and we have to go off of what the developer has stated in the information (and some really do have good intentions, not that I know for sure that anyone had bad ones).
Anyhow, good luck with everything in the future and I look forward to continuing to read your blog!
This is exactly the reason that I wrote my post ab…
About the Author: Mirla G. Raz
I am an Arizona licensed speech pathologist and am certified by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. I have been in private practice for over 30 years working extensively with children who have speech and language problems. I received my Master’s degree from Seton Hall University in New Jersey. After graduation, I decided that I need sun and warmth and so headed south to work for the Volusia County Schools in Daytona Beach Florida. The next year I moved to California where I was offered a job working for the Los Angeles Unified School District in the severe oral language handicapped program. My next move was to UCLA where I worked in the department of Clinical Linguistics at the Neuropsychiatric Institute. In 1981, I moved to Arizona where I went into private practice. It gives me tremendous satisfaction to know that I have helped hundreds of children gain normal speech and language skills.
