Design a mobile app that solves an equity issue.
I focused on equity issues within social media, specifically the issue of imposter syndrome. I resonated with both of these topics because I’ve experienced them before, and I felt that I can learn more than just design things by exploring these issues.
Despite how common it is, not many people know or talk about imposter syndrome, making it seem like an insignificant problem only a few face.
“An estimated 70% of people experience these impostor feelings at some point in their lives”
- Abrams, 2018
Create a digital support system for art and STEM students
Art and STEM students are two of the fields most heavily impacted by imposter syndrome. By providing students the resources and support they need, students would be more willing to open up about their experiences, thus decreasing the taboo and effects of imposter syndrome.
Complete and save Boost packs to build a confidence-building habit
Connecting with others in your major, interests circles, and more
For my project, I wanted to focus on Art and STEM undergraduates. STEM is one of the largest fields of study, and nearly every STEM student has experienced imposter syndrome due to the highly competitive nature of the field. The art and design holds similar imposter syndrome rates due to the starving artist stereotypes.
I first I created personas representing an art and STEM student to generate better and more targeted solutions for the problem at hand.
I interviewed five Arts and STEM undergraduates to learn about their experience with imposter syndrome. My goal was to find out how much students knew about the concept, whether they’ve experienced it before, and how they dealt with it. I found that:
About half my interviewees knew of imposter syndrome and have experienced it before.
Imposter syndrome seems like a collective “human” problem rather than an individual issue.
Possible causes could be confidence levels, a person’s environment, and self-comparisons.
When experiencing it, they usually just accept the feelings and move on or talk to friends about it.
The most effective way to combat it would be changing your mindset, being more confident, and talking to close friends
Based on my research insights, I did a Crazy 8 sketch of possible layouts and key features I wanted to implement. This helped translate the data into tangible visuals and gave an idea of what would work.
Based on my research findings, it seemed the main functions to include were:
Placing users in small groups to encourage them to discuss their troubles and receive support.
Help users build confidence in themselves and their work with exercises.
Articles, videos, and other resources are available for users to learn more about imposter syndrome.
Throughout my iterations, I conducted a total of 10 usability tests with Art and STEM undergraduates. The goals of each test were slightly different, but ultimately came down to evaluating the app’s navigability and the clarity of the narrative, purpose, and target audience.
Many users said talking was their way of dealing with imposter syndrome. I decided to have Boost be a community-centered app made of smaller groups to further that discussion and encourage individuals to open up. Here’s what I found after several usability tests:
Unclear narrative: The audience seemed to be all college students rather than a specific group of students. It also seemed more like a social app combined with mental wellbeing rather than an app made to combat imposter syndrome.
Navigability issues: Users ignored some task actions due easily-missed placements, lack of CTAs and back buttons, and unclear menu icons.
💡 Main takeaway: Clarify who and what the app is for.
I added an onboarding process to clarify Boost’s intentions and audience to the user. I was still focused on the support group aspect, so I continued prototyping that branch with colors and images. With the second round of usability testing, I found that the narrative was still unclear.
Boarder audience: Rather than just undergraduates, users thought the target audience for students of any standing.
Skimmed onboarding: Users skimmed over the onboarding but were still able to see that it was a social app centered around imposter syndrome.
💡 Main takeaway: Specify your audience through your copy text and designs.
I redesigned the onboarding screens to further clarify the audience and expand on the purpose of the app, adjusting some of the visuals to be more welcoming as well. I continued user testing and discovered that while the new onboarding was successful, there were other issues.
Layout: Although Boost was chat-focused, the current homepage hierarchy made the exercises seem more important. The design of the exercises also made them seem more like articles.
Confusing copy: Descriptor texts were sometimes vague and didn’t inform users what things were.
Among these findings, I received the most critical yet eye-opening feedback:
“I think you might be doing too much.”
I was going too in-depth with my designs trying to account for every single user action and app interaction. This overload of information made it hard for users to discern the purpose of Boost.
My current iterations had nearly complete flows for logins, adding and joining chats, settings, and access to confidence exercises. It had so many tasks and user flows that it seemed more like a hi-fi prototype than a lo-fi iteration.
The extensiveness of my designs convoluted the narrative I was trying to tell. While the group chats were a great feature to have, my designs didn't convey how it was helpful or how it related to imposter syndrome, leading to confusion about the app’s purpose and intended audience.
But, upon finding the motivation exercises, one of the more minor features, users were able to deduce who and what Boost was for: helping undergraduates deal with imposter syndrome. This clarity in the narrative made me pivot from my initial idea of a support group app to an app that’s focused on the individual and building themselves.
By focusing my designs on just one or two tasks, I would be able to craft a more cohesive and clear goal of what Boost aims to do.
💡 Main takeaway: Focus on strengthening one to two tasks and continue clarifying your narrative rather than creating an entire app experience.
And so, I made Boost to be more exercise-centered, reworking user flows and building onto screens I had previously. I conducted one last round of user tests before moving on to my final submission.
Unclear labels: Users found the saved icon and section headers to be confusing due to vagueness and lack of labels.
I also changed the floating menu to a slide-out. Users have expressed concerns about its placement blocking other information on the screen, so I opted for a hidden menu to optimize screen space. This also allows for more white space that makes the interface seem more open, calming the user as they go through the app.
I wanted Boost to be a safe place for undergraduates to let out their feelings and grow to overcome their imposter syndrome. My design system encompasses this notion by being inviting, warm, and open.
Typography
Modern and human
The sans-serif fonts of Poppins and Univers are modern yet humanistic, appealing to the younger, tech-savy undergraduates and making the app inviting and casual.
Colors
Calming pastels
The muted pastels appeals to emotional design as it makes the app feel calming, relieving, and friendly.
Imagery
Simple and welcoming
The simple blob characters create a relaxing and welcoming environment. Using these blobs instead of human photos also gives a sense of anonymity, thus promoting inclusivity and the idea that anyone can use the app.
Copywriting
Clear, Concise, Encouraging
Boost's writing is clear, concise, and encouraging. The conciseness takes into account undergraduates’ schedules, and the encouragement incentivizes users to continue using the app through positive reinforcement.
Boost helps art and STEM undergraduates combat imposter syndrome by helping them establish a confidence-building routine with daily exercises, access to mental health resources, and online support groups.
A detailed explanation of user tasks and findings can be found here.
With each evolution comes a new wave of successes and failures, leading to the next iteration, and the next, and so on. A designer’s job is never done, but one must know when to stop.
Such iterations would not have been possible without user testing and learning what a user thinks of your app when they have no idea what’s it about or your thought process behind it.
I had this grand vision that my final product would fully-functioning with complete user flows for every action a user could possibly do. Critical feedback made me realize that not every feature you want to include needs to be implemented: all you need is one or two tasks for your users to help them understand what your app is and how to use it.
