Connect
The designated cultural-reflection journaling app for Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders.
Role
Connect is a post-graduate capstone project at University of Sydney. For this project, I was the product designer (mobile) and co-researcher.
Duration
February 2024 - May 2024
Overview
Our client, Tribal Warrior, a non-profit community organization dedicated to revitalizing Aboriginal culture, challenged us to collaborate in leveraging the growth of digital health investments. Our goal is to support Aboriginal health, wellbeing, and cultural outcomes through technology-based interventions.
Team
Sally (mobile design, co-researcher), Herbie (physical journal design, co-researcher), Serena (co-researcher), Fiona (co-researcher)
Tools
Figma, Miro
Scope
UI/UX, Interaction Design, User Research, Usability Testing
Result
Received the Kookaburra Award at Graduation Studio (out of 40+ teams total)
STAKEHOLDER FEEDBACK
“Really thinking outside the box and addressing a current issue within the indigenous youth. AMAZING, CURRENT, HEALING!”
– Dr. Siupeli Haukoloa-Paea, The Gadigal Centre
BACKGROUND
From the ground up
There’s always a first when it comes to design.
As international students in Australia, our team essentially knew nothing about aboriginal Australians. We did know, however, that the key to a good design is one that is created in the users’ shoes. So, the first thing we did was to get to the bottom of it. To do so, we explored potential factors and underlying themes, using historical context and case studies, to understand why they receive comparatively less support than other Australians. We specifically looked at their history and culture to understand their current motives and pain points.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders individuals
“cannot achieve positive mental health outcomes without positive connections with their country, their identity and their broader community” (Stevens, 2018)
30.7%
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people felt 'little or no connection with culture' (McDowall, 2016)
DESIGN BRIEF
The problem
Through our research, we have discovered that the Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities need a platform that supports individual cultural reflection practices because they need tailored Social and Emotional Wellbeing (SEWB) and mental health care that fosters a strong connection to culture. This leads to the question,
How can we offer this tailored support?
LET’S BACKTRACK A LITTLE…
What is cultural reflection?
To facilitate cultural reflection more easily, we want to find an easier way to integrate these activities, making it simpler for users to engage with and reflect on their culture. But how?
DISCOVERY
What we found
There is still a gap between our background research and our product. To connect the dots, our methodology is to break our solution down into three main sections and approach it one by one.
Key findings
There is a lack of tailored mental health apps for Indigenous Australians
In our market research of various health advice and guidance apps, we found that most available apps are built for a wider audience and less tailored use.
Indigenous culture places a big emphasis on community
Additionally, our analysis of popular apps on the market highlighted the importance of community. Given Indigenous people's unified and strong cultural heritage, incorporating community features into our product may be a promising way to attract our target users.
HOW MIGHT WE’S
IDEATION
Back on the drawing board
With this information in mind, we went back on the drawing board to ideate different solutions. What if we create an app for them to share their household recipes? What if we find ways to support local businesses?
It then dawned on me -
As a third-culture kid myself, staying connected with my culture and accepting this identity has always been quite confusing and oftentimes difficult. What if these young indigenous Australians also feel the same?
To ensure that this is a real problem they are facing, we conducted more research and explored current solutions on the market.
Our target audience are 16 - 35 year old Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders in Australia who wish to reconnect with their cultural identity.
Here’s what we found:
PROBLEM BREAKDOWN
Lack of direction. There is a lack of products on the market to support cultural connection and users don’t know where or how to start this journey.
Difficulty staying consistent. Users often don’t have the time or motivation to journal.
How Connect solves the problem
Connect is an interactive design solution that addresses the primary design objective of how digital health investments can bolster the health, wellbeing, and cultural outcomes of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities through technology-driven interventions. The solution centers on two critical areas: connection and consistency.
To begin with, Connect addresses the challenge of consistency by providing users with prompts that guide their reflections, thus removing the burden of deciding what and how to reflect each time. This not only offers clear direction but also encourages regular reflection, a challenge often faced in journaling. We further motivate users through a reward system and streaks, ensuring they maintain consistent reflective practices.
Moreover, Connect tackles the issue of connection by encouraging users to delve deeply into their cultural identity. It suggests relevant activities and digital resources that engage both the mind and body, fostering a deeper connection to culture. Additionally, the platform fosters community connection by bringing together individuals with shared interests, creating a collaborative space where users can collectively engage with their culture.
HI-FI PROTOTYPE
I focused on refining a few main screens ready to present at the graduation showcase. As the deadlines were tight, I didn’t want to lose out on quality for quantity.
Style guide
USABILITY TESTING
To ensure that our solution works beyond the concept, we took it upon ourselves to conduct 6 user testing during our graduation showcase.
KEY CHANGES
Re-emphasized entries. A comment we received was that our saved journal entries page lacked focus due to the overwhelming amount of red across the page. To fix that, I ensured that the “connection scale” stays as the main focus as it highlights progress and is the key tracker of success.
Increased accessibility. As this solution is meant to be used on mobiles, the small icons with red outlines may not be enough contrast for some users. To make it more identifiable, I increased the icon size and color-coded all the various moods.
The solution
The main feature of Connect is its daily reflection prompts. These questions are designed to be simple to answer but thought-provoking nonetheless.
Reflection prompts
PAIN POINTS SOLVED: These prompts encourage users to reflect on moments in their lives that connect to their culture. They simplify the process of starting the reflection journey, addressing the challenge of not knowing how or where to begin.
Users can discover local events and businesses. The feature also provides recommendations for books, movies, and music to help them connect with their culture in various ways.
Discover local culture
PAIN POINTS SOLVED: The Daily Challenge feature incentivizes users to engage with their culture in their local area. Not only do the tailored suggestions help users discover their culture in diverse ways, but it also ensures they reconnect with their culture both physically and mentally while giving them a place to start.
Note: They all mean “hello” in different indigenous languages! Read more about it here.
The Community feature lets users connect with others on the same journey. Given the diversity of Indigenous cultures, it's valuable to see how others connect with their heritage and learn about different Indigenous cultures.
Connect with community
PAIN POINTS SOLVED: By creating an online community, users can connect with others who are also trying to reconnect with their cultural identity, learn from and inspire each other, and form new relationships, so they don't have to embark on this journey alone.
What I’ve Learned
Understanding user motives is integral in design.
A big portion of this project was spent on research to understand more about aboriginal australians’ history, culture, and background. I wanted to know more about their motives and pain points in order to create a tailored solution for them. Although we didn’t get to go out in person to talk to our target users, I think we were able to get a solid understanding nonetheless.
Make it personal.
I believe that a big contribution to this project’s success is that I was able to make a seemingly “unrelated” brief personal. By finding a common ground between me and the users, I found a way to empathize and connect (ha ha) with them on a deeper level. I believe that this shows through the designs I created as it adds a unique touch.
NEXT STEPS
And… that’s a wrap!
(For now :) )
With the positive feedback we received from our tutors, unit coordinator, and clients, we will be submitting this project to University of Sydney’s Student Innovation Awards. We hope that by bringing this project out into the world, we would be able to make a real, positive impact in the community. Stay tuned!
Interactive prototype
