Using Technology to Promote Self-Care and Personal Growth: A Case Study
This case study aims to investigate the impact of COVID-19 stay-at-home orders on mental health and identify potential ways a product could address these challenges.
Problem and Solution
Role: UX/UI Designer
Date: June 2020 - July 2020
Tools: Figma, UsabilityHub, Google Suite
The COVID-19 pandemic has presented many challenges and uncertainties, leading to high levels of anxiety, loneliness, and stress among people. User research has also revealed that there is a need for more consistent practices such as meditation and journaling to help individuals manage these challenges and improve their mental health.
Peace of Mind aims to provide users with the tools and resources they need to take control of their mental health and find peace of mind. By consistently engaging in practices such as meditation and journaling, users can strengthen their psychological well-being and gain a greater understanding of themselves and how to cope with the stresses and changes that life brings. POM is designed to be a supportive and empowering resource for individuals seeking to improve their mental health and wellbeing.
Discovery Research
Research Goals
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Clarity on the participant’s mindset and emotional health during the pandemic
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Determine the frequency in which the participant engages in the practice of meditation and journal writing
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Understand the reasons for engaging in the practice of meditation and journal writing
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Gauge the person’s opinion of the effectiveness of meditation and journaling
Understanding Our Target Audience
To fulfill the research goals, I created an online survey using Google Forms and accumulated responses from Slack and Reddit. Take the survey here.
According to user surveys, a significant portion of respondents reported experiencing mental health challenges such as stress and difficulty relaxing. In order to address these issues, many of the respondents turn to meditation and journal writing as effective means of managing their stress and improving their mental health. In fact, 87% of respondents reported using meditation to relieve stress, while 63% used it to alleviate anxiety and depression. These findings suggest that there is a strong need for resources and support related to meditation and journal writing as stress management techniques within this user group.
According to the data provided, journaling was found to be effective by the majority of participants, with an additional 28% finding it "somewhat effective". However, the inconsistent practice of both meditation and journaling seems to decrease their overall effectiveness. In fact, there appears to be a correlation between the frequency of these habits and their perceived efficacy, with only 18.8% of participants practicing meditation daily and 27.8% journaling once a month.
To maximize the benefits of these practices, it may be beneficial to implement an accountability factor in the product to encourage more consistent use. This could involve setting goals or reminders for users to engage in meditation and journaling on a regular basis or providing rewards or incentives for those who do so. By increasing the use of the app, the effectiveness of these habits may be greatly enhanced.
Looking at the Market
In order to better understand the needs and preferences of my target audience with regard to mental health and wellness, I conducted a competitive analysis of two popular meditation and journaling apps: Calm and Headspace. Both of these apps offer a range of meditations for various mental health challenges, as well as features like mood tracking and the ability to share progress on social media. They also provide users with the option to set reminders to hold themselves accountable for their practice. In addition, Calm and Headspace have responded to the COVID-19 pandemic by offering their free subscription to members of certain health insurance providers or to those who have lost their jobs.
However, these apps also have some weaknesses in the market. One common complaint among users is the high price of the subscription, which has been cited as a concern in app store reviews. In addition, some users have reported feeling overwhelmed by a large number of overlapping meditations available on these platforms. These issues could potentially be addressed in order to improve the user experience and make the app more appealing to potential customers.
Empathizing with our Users
Taking all the findings from the user surveys and competitive analysis, I was able to create two user personas to help put a face and backstory on the target audience. In addition, to truly understand what the persona is feeling, I created an empathy map. The empathy map allows me to put myself in their shoes and appreciate their thought process.
Information Architecture
What is their Story?
After thoroughly researching and understanding the goals, motivations, and pain points of my target users, I selected 5 user stories as the key features of my product. Using the Pareto principle, I focused on the 20% of features that would be used by 80% of my users, ensuring that the resulting minimum viable product (MVP) would meet the needs of the majority of users while minimizing development time and resources. The user stories that make up the MVP are as follows:
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As a user, I want to start a meditation on a specific topic.
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As a user, I want to start a journal entry.
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As a user, I want to rate my mood.
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As a user, I want to rate my sleep.
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As a user, I want to set a mindfulness reminder.
User Stories Guide the Flow
To help clearly visualize the steps that users would take when using the key features of my product, I created user flows. These flows detailed the various actions and decisions that users would make as they progressed through each user story, allowing me to better understand the user experience and identify potential points of friction or confusion. By mapping out the user journey in this way, I was also able to create wireframes that captured the overall layout and functionality of the product. This helped me to effectively communicate my design ideas and get a sense of how the product would look and feel for users.
Low-Fidelity Wireframes
To begin the process of crafting wireframes for my product, I first engaged in a quick brainstorming session to generate ideas for the main pages of the product. This involved sketching out various layouts and design concepts to explore different options. Once I had a sense of which sketches to move forward with, I used the user flows I had previously created to guide me in creating each screen of the wireframe.
In the second phase of wireframe development, I used Figma to translate my sketches into low-fidelity wireframes, which provided a more detailed and interactive representation of my design ideas. This allowed me to make adjustments and test out different layouts and features. Once the low-fidelity wireframes were complete, I conducted user testing to gather feedback and identify any areas for improvement. This helped me to refine the wireframes and ensure that they effectively met the needs and goals of my target users.
Visual Design
Brand Characteristics
As the project progressed, I began the process of developing the branding and identity for my product. To ensure that the brand accurately reflected the key characteristics that I wanted it to embody, I used the following values as guiding principles: growth, understanding, tranquility, and accountability. These values informed my decision-making process as I selected the typography and color palette for the brand.
I carefully considered how each font and color choice would contribute to the overall tone and personality of the brand, and experimented with different options to find the best fit. By staying true to these core values, I was able to create a cohesive and consistent brand identity that accurately conveyed the essence of my product.
Typography
When selecting a typeface for the meditation aspect of my product, I wanted to find a font that conveyed a sense of lightness and openness. I ultimately decided on a lightweight, wide sans serif typeface, as the thinness of the font could symbolize the burden and stress being lifted through the act of meditation.
For the journaling aspect of the product, I wanted to choose a font that had a more handwritten feel to it, to reflect the informal and personal nature of journaling. I, therefore, decided on a serif typeface that had a brisk, lively quality, evoking the feeling of quickly noting one's thoughts in a notebook. This led me to choose Playfair Display and Manrope as the brand's typefaces. These fonts helped to create a cohesive and visually appealing brand identity that accurately reflected the essence of my product.
Color Palette
Based on my research, it is clear that many people use meditation apps to help them manage their anxiety, reduce stress, and achieve personal growth. With these findings and the desired brand characteristics of growth, understanding, tranquility, and accountability in mind, I wanted the colors used in my product to create a sense of safety and serenity for users. To achieve this, I chose colors that were low in saturation, which can convey a sense of calmness and peacefulness.
Additionally, I carefully considered how each color would contribute to the overall tone and personality of the brand, and selected shades that aligned with the values I wanted to embody. By thoughtfully choosing colors that reflected the goals and needs of my target users, I was able to create a cohesive and consistent visual identity for my product that effectively conveyed its purpose and benefits.
Usability Testing
Testing Process
During the development process of Peace of Mind (POM), I conducted two rounds of in-person user testing to gather feedback and validate my design decisions. The first round was focused on testing the assumptions I had made in the low-fidelity wireframes, while the second round took place after I had incorporated typography, imagery, and color palette into the screens to create a high-fidelity prototype.
I recruited two participants for both rounds of testing: a 29-year-old nurse with a Bachelor's degree and a 26-year-old behavioral technician with a Bachelor's degree. To gather feedback, I asked questions at three different points: before the test (focusing on demographics, relationship with stress, and experiences with meditation and journaling), after the task was completed (to understand motivations for taking specific actions), and after the test was completed (focusing on overall experience with the product). This helped me to gather valuable insights and make informed decisions about the design and functionality of POM.
Results and Takeaways
First Round of Testing:
During the first round of testing, users identified an issue with the process of selecting a meditation lesson. They reported finding it confusing and mentioned that they felt that the user interface (UI) elements did not provide enough information about the content of each lesson. Upon further clarification, it became clear that users would benefit from having more descriptive information about each lesson in order to better understand what they might entail and decide which session to choose.
To address this issue, I could consider adding more detailed descriptions of each lesson to the UI, or providing users with the option to preview or sample the lessons before making a selection. By providing users with more information about the content and focus of each lesson, I can help to improve the clarity and usability of the meditation selection process.
Second Round of Testing:
During the second round of testing, participants noted that the screens related to the task "Adding a mindfulness reminder" did not match the visual style of the rest of the app. They suggested revamping these screens to better align with the overall aesthetic of the project.
Conclusion
What worked?
As I reflect on the development process of Peace of Mind (POM), I believe that two things went particularly well. First, the visual design of the product effectively conveyed the mood and characteristics that I wanted it to embody. Through the use of colors, typography, and a style guide, I was able to create a cohesive and consistent visual identity that accurately reflected the values and goals of the brand.
Second, the user research I conducted proved to be invaluable in identifying and addressing the needs and challenges of my target audience. The assets I created, such as user personas and an empathy map, helped me to deeply understand the experiences and issues faced by my users, and the problem was clearly defined. Through this research, I was able to develop solutions that effectively addressed the problems users had been dealing with, such as:
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COVID-19 and stay-at-home orders were taking a mental toll on people.
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Two mental health exercises that professionals deem beneficial, which are journaling and meditation are being practiced by the users but not on a consistent basis. This doesn’t help train the mind as effectively as it can be trained.
Through my research, I have identified several solutions that Peace of Mind (POM) offers to users in order to address their needs and challenges:
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A space where they can practice meditating using different topics and journal writing.
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Accountability - by allowing them to do daily check-ins on their sleep and mood and by setting reminders for sleep, meditation, or journaling.
These solutions have been developed based on a thorough understanding of the goals, motivations, and pain points of my target audience, and are designed to help users improve their mental health and well-being through the practices of meditation and journaling. By offering a range of resources and tools to support these practices, POM aims to empower users to take control of their mental health and find greater peace of mind.
What would you do differently next time?
To further expand and improve the Discovery Phase of my project, there are a few additional steps I would consider taking. First, I would conduct a competitive analysis of note-taking apps in the market to better understand the landscape and identify areas for differentiation. Second, I would add a diary study to gather more in-depth insights about the effectiveness of journaling and journal writing with users. This could involve asking users to keep a journal for a set period of time and tracking their experiences and outcomes. Finally, I would add user interviews after the surveys to provide more context and depth to my personas.
In terms of usability testing, there are also a few ways I would aim to improve the process if I had more time. First, I would create usability test goals to structure the questions I ask during the test and focus on specific topics. This would help me to better understand the user experience and identify areas for improvement. Second, I would conduct more tests to gather more data. One way to do this would be to use tools like maze.design, which allow designers to upload their screens, set goals, and gather feedback from participants. Another option would be to conduct more remote testing, which could allow me to reach a wider and more diverse group of users. By implementing these improvements, I can gather more thorough and actionable insights about the usability and effectiveness of my product.
What are the next steps?
Looking ahead, there are a few areas of Peace of Mind (POM) that I would like to focus on improving. First, I plan to spend more time refining the visual design of the project, including iterating on the logo and possibly adding an icon. By continuing to develop and polish the visual identity of POM, I hope to create a more cohesive and visually appealing product.
Additionally, I plan to re-conduct usability tests to gather more in-depth insights about the user experience. This time, I will be sure to set written goals, focus my questions on specific topics, and include more participants in the testing process. By using a more structured and systematic approach to usability testing, I can gather more actionable and reliable data to inform my design decisions. By making these improvements, I hope to create a product that is intuitive, user-friendly, and effective at meeting the needs of my target audience.