What is Translational Science?
By Tim Campellone, PhD, VP of Translational Science
A common question I get asked is, “What is Translational Science?” As the name suggests, it’s about translating science. However, unlike its origin in drug development, where science is translated from animal to human trials, Translational Science at Woebot Health sits at the intersection of clinical and product development.
Translational Science at Woebot Health is unique because someone in this role shapes the product development process at every step–from early discovery to implementation and evidence generation. As such, being a translational scientist requires a strong grounding in clinical, behavioral, and neuroscience and an understanding of how to apply this knowledge to build a digital support tool.
Translation from clinical to product
Translational Science brings the latest clinical, behavioral, and neuroscience evidence to the development of support tools. At the core of successful translation is distilling the “active ingredients” of the science to define product requirements.
Successful translation in this direction is defined by providing our product and content teams with clear guidance for implementation while allowing for the space to bring the science to life in a way that conforms to the existing Woebot user experience.
Translation from product to clinical
Translational Science is about leveraging the unique medium of digital to drive new clinical science. So much of the application of clinical science in treatment has been shaped by the space in which it’s delivered: the 50-minute therapy hour.
We know that our users are talking with Woebot at all hours of the day, and rather than a single 50-minute session, conversations unfold in shorter, more frequent, and natural exchanges. By embracing the unique way in which we are able to reach people and support them in working through challenges in the moment in the real world, we are able to bring clinical science to life in a new and unprecedented way with our current support tools.
Successful translation in this direction is defined by exploring and validating new ways to drive meaningful engagement and outcomes for our users in the future.
Translational Science in action: From discovery to development
Translational science starts at the earliest stage of product development at Woebot Health: Discovery. Here, findings from our clinical studies, product tests, and newly published science are translated into prototypes for testing.
An example of this comes from a recently published paper (Forman-Hoffman et al., 2023) looking at engagement clusters in a single-arm trial of one of our Woebot products. The cluster associated with the greatest clinical outcomes was characterized by, among other things, greater application of knowledge from Woebot in daily life.
From here, we translated this finding into concepts that we tested with users via research outside of Woebot and through questions inside the product. This testing aims to take the typically abstract form of an idea and make it tangible so users can engage and provide feedback.
With insights and data in hand from testing, we then translated what we learned into a set of requirements and guidance to inform how this concept is implemented into the existing Woebot user experience.
