Kuma
Expediting connections for a healthier future
Skills
UX Research, UI Design, UX Design, Prototyping
Timeline
Jun-Nov 2023
background
Mental health encompasses our emotional, psychological, and social well-being, impacting how we think, feel, and interact with the world.
It forms the foundation for our resilience, happiness, and productivity. Spending time in nature reduces stress and anxiety, with studies showing lower cortisol levels and improved mood in individuals who regularly engage with the outdoors. The calming and restorative effects of nature are increasingly recognized in mental health interventions, with ecotherapy programs gaining traction as complementary therapies for conditions like depression and anxiety.
Problem
Rates of depression and anxiety among young people have doubled in the past decade.
One in five adolescents experience mental health concerns. While research points to a strong link between spending time outdoors and improved mental well-being, a significant portion of youth face barriers to nature. These include factors like urbanization, limited access to green spaces, and busy schedules.
Mental health statistics from Pew Research Center.
Solution
With Kuma, you can effortlessly find time for outdoor adventures with your friends.
Jump to final solution
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Discovery
Understanding what mental health means to young adults and the role natural spaces have in their lives.
Targeting college students across the United States, I focused on understanding the aspects of mental health and nature that young adults valued. Additionally, I studied their frustrations, how they conceptualized mental health, and what they felt they needed more/less of.
User survey–44 responses
To understand general trends of mental health and nature with young adults and their attitudes towards community, health, and work.
User interviews–12 participants
To learn about young adults' behavior, motivations, and frustrations regarding the role of mental health, nature, and increasingly, relationships, in their daily lives.
Secondary research & competitive analysis
To learn successful elements of social communication, organization, and mapping tools.
Images captured during competitive analysis and affinity map.
A look into the affinity map of my user research findings. This is only 1/4th of the whole thing!
insights
Young adults find the greatest impact for their mental wellbeing in spending time with loved ones and community, and favor spending their time outdoors with friends.
Sharing experiences and building positive relationships with loved ones and community fosters a sense of belonging, support, and purpose, contributed to an improved sense of wellbeing.
Technology presents both benefits and challenges.
It facilitates moments of spontaneous connection in our busy lives, but can also lead to distraction and decreased engagement from their lives.
Awe-inducing experiences are powerful.
While describing their positive experiences in nature, participants often mentioned experiences where natural beauties or curiosities invoked awe. Awe has been found to contribute to positive mental and physical health.
Nature plays a crucial role in mental wellness.
Access to nature is important, but often challenging in urban settings. Limited green spaces and hectic lifestyles often restrict opportunities for awe-inducing experiences in nature.
NARROWING the problem
How might we leverage the power of social experiences and close relationships in nature to promote mental well-being?
I wanted to promote awe-inspiring experiences in natural spaces with the natural incentive of seeing your friends.
IDEATING
Brainstorming solutions that amplify human curiosity, joy, and connection in natural spaces.
To build on people’s curiosity for nature and value for social connection, I explored ideas following the process of making memories outdoors.
Low-fidelity sketches of possible app concepts.
The design concept
Converging on the social factor.
After measuring user impact, I moved forward with the social connection concept. By sharing availabilities, young adults could easily find opportunities to spend time outdoors with their friends. Using our app, you can easily share your status, view your friends’ statuses, share and view locations, and even schedule availability in advance.
DESIGN ITERATIONS
Refining explorations
I conducted 2 rounds of usability testing with young adults to understand how they would navigate the user interface and flow and integrate Kuma into their routines.
Young adults found that broadcasting their availability preferences to their close friends circle alleviated friction with initiating outings, and they liked having options to display levels of how ready and enthusiastic they were. However, many found the way those options were displayed confusing, and wished for greater clarity and usability in the app overall.
Here are some ways I addressed those challenges:
Iteration 1
Conduct testing to find meaningful icons and display them in a way that better represents user status
Iteration 2
Break up input box into sections to clearly demonstrate availability information purpose
Iteration 3
Simplify inputs and combine calendar and list displays with a sliding modal to reduce cognitive load
THE FINAL SOLUTION
Streamlining the coordination of outdoor adventures with friends.
Kuma facilitates scheduling outdoor adventures with friends, making it easy to immerse yourself in memorable experiences and deepen your connections effortlessly.
Efficiently communicate your availability preferences
Avoid awkward missed texts and tone miscommunications with three levels of availability indicators represented by friendly animal icons.
Clearly view availability and location information
Using visual elements to communicate availability messages in a manner that is engaging and simple.
Memories and scheduling maximize the benefits of time outdoors with friends and prevent missed connections
Users can view their past outings and connections in the archive, where they can scroll through what was/wasn’t done with who.
INSIGHTS, ANSWERED
Social relationships are key for mental health -> strengthen existing relationships
Technology boosts connection but reduces engagement -> use technology as a tool, not an experience
Insufficient access to awe & nature experiences -> inspire outdoors activities
REFLECTIONS
Key learnings
I really enjoyed getting to work on a project related to two of my greatest interests, nature and mental health. I am grateful to everyone who gave their time and shared their stories in my interviews; it was enlightening to hear from the range of perspectives on how different people experience these two almost universal topics. Mental health especially, is such a private matter, and I am thankful to those who were comfortable enough to share their experiences and let me in. Some key takaways:
1
Usability testing is invaluable.
The feedback and information I gleaned during user interviews and usability testing took this project in a direction I never imagined, and illuminated many, many blind spots. Seeking regular feedback from the very beginning to the very end of this process made my work easier and stronger.
2
Have fun!
When building consumer products, there is so much potential for joyful experiences and adding unique touches. I found that going in this direction (while exercising restraint) improved the user experience in many little ways.
Solution
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