Brief Proposal Narrative Proposal Title: ShadyZones App Your Name: Amanda Lynn Ferry Overview of Specific Aims The purpose of this application is to increase personal safety and a person’s feeling of security and potentially reduce person to person violence. If a person could see the level of safety of an area before going there it would increase their feeling of security and possibly reduce incidents of person-to-person violence. For those who are concerned about safety a mobile application could be the best way to find out how to avoid unsafe areas wherever they are. The target audience for this application would be parents of small children and teenagers, travelers and city dwellers. Someone who is moving to a new town, needs to travel a new route or wants to get somewhere by the safest streets. The application would track sightings of people or activities which appear unsafe. When a person witnesses something that they would like to report they tap the application icon and choose to report something. The GPS location is recorded and collected into a database. The app will provide a map of reported locations so that users may avoid areas with higher concentrations of reports. Push notifications can alert users when they enter an area with many reports nearby. Potential Impact In modern society interpersonal violence can be an issue for many people. For some the topic of personal safety may be a common concern. Many of us make decisions on a daily bases, sometimes without noticing it, in an effort to reduce our risk of becoming victims of interpersonal violence. Most of us are astute enough to recognize when we are in a unsafe neighborhood or walking down a potentially dangerous street. But how can we avoid wandering into these areas in the first place? Unless a person is familiar with the area it is likely that they will have little knowledge on how to stay in the safest parts of town. Although we may feel relatively safe most of the time, studies show that many of us still behave in ways meant to improve our safety and that feeling of security. One
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survey (Fletcher, 2009) of female faculty on a university campus revealed that many of them often took precautionary measures for personal safety. The most commonly reported behaviors were “locking car doors when alone (83%), planning a route with safety in mind (81%), carrying keys in a defensive manner (81%), checking back seats of car for intruders prior to entry (76%), avoiding walking past strangers when alone (62%), avoiding specific areas of campus at night (57%), walking with another individual (52%), and changing their routine activities (50%).“ The participants of the survey believed such actions would help guard against violence, physical assault, stalking, abuse, harassment and robbery. In particular the practice of planning a route with safety in mind was reported by 81% of participants to be something that they do often. Avoiding specific areas of campus at night was practiced by 51% of participants. Both statements exemplify how people will attribute a level of safety risk to an area and evaluate their perception of security based on their surroundings. It seems that safety is often on our minds. We teach our children how to be safe and avoid strangers and we ourselves take precaution. Is violence, however, just an irrational fear that we have? According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) “Violence is one of the leading causes of death in all parts of the world for persons ages 15 to 44.” Every year 1.6 million deaths are caused by violence (CDC, 2012). The CDC recognizes violence as an issue and works with countries around the world to help plan against and prevent violence. More than 50 countries had national launches of the World Report on Violence and Health, and more than 25 countries have developed plans of action for violence prevention based on its recommendations (Krug, 2002). Violence is not just a problem on the individual or community level, but a global level. It is true that the effects of violence can be measure in the loss of human life. However, the impact on communities, families, individuals and youths are often not counted. Youths especially can suffer effects on their physical, mental and social wellbeing. According to one study on the impact of community violence on children many youths (Guterman, 1997) when exposed to violence , whether they are a victim or a witness, “frequently suffer serious psychosocial consequences including posttraumatic
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stress disorder (PTSD) , increased depression, cognitive and academic delays, and increased aggression.“ According to the World Report on Violence and Health (Krug, 2002), although many efforts are focused on violence prevention, there are still many gaps yet to be filled. Near the end of their report the World Health Organization (WHO) detailed some suggested efforts based on these gaps. Among them were a need for increased collaboration and exchange of information on violence prevention and an enhanced capacity for collecting data on violence. By using popular technology to reach individuals and in particular, utilizing the social aspect of this technology we can focus on both of these goals through the ShadyZones application. The contribution I expect to make with my application is to provide mobile access to primary source data based on the perceived safety risk of users. Doing so will not only aid in reaching the goals of the World Health Organization, but will yield many other positive benefits as well. Among some of the primary expected benefits are improving the well being of individuals by lessening anxiety about safety, reducing a person’s risk of experiencing physical assault, stalking, harassment and robbery, and reduce incidents of interpersonal violence. The places in the greatest need of these benefits are urban and high population suburban areas. This is where community violence is most prevalent so this is where our target audience lives. Other factors include income, and gender. Women, though not necessarily more likely to be a victim of violence, are more likely to feel worried about their personal safety. One study in Canada (HRADC, 2012) revealed that women tend to be less confident about their safety. While 71% of men felt safe using public transportation after dark, only 42% of women felt the same. Women also reported feeling more worried about walking alone after dark in their neighborhood and being home alone in the evening. This difference in perceptions of safety suggests that the impacts we are trying to make with our application would have the greatest benefit for women living in urban areas. Vision Others have attempted to address the issue of safety and interpersonal violence through technology. The focus has been mainly on providing safety tips or aggregated
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data from various sources. An example of one application which uses mapped data to inform the public is CrimeMapping.com (The Omega Group Inc., 2012) . The service is offered as an online application or through the apple app store for mobile devices. The organization allows police departments in the United States to report crimes in their district. The crimes reported show up on an interactive map similar to Google Maps. Each incident has listed the nature of the crime, the case number, the date, location and a short description of what happened. The purpose of their efforts are to inform the citizenry, and presumably help keep people safe. Another application called Spot Crime (ReportSee Inc., 2012) has a similar goal and method. They plot crime incidents on Google Maps from police departments, news reports and some user reports. Their answer to mobile devices is an iphone app which provides map plotted incidents of crimes similar to CrimeMapping. Both of these solutions rely heavily on the input and upkeep of the developers or organizations leading the project. Though tracking incidents of crimes can provide important information for police departments, it does not necessarily help people feel more secure. These services also list crimes such as vandalism and disturbing the peace which are not the type of activities that would cause a person to worry about personal safety A person using these applications are either concerned with actual crime statistics or personal safety. More likely someone needing crime statistics will not be looking for a mobile app as a research tool. The likely user is the person who is concerned with personal safety. However, the information provided is not directly relevant to the needs of this users. By providing them with the locations of crimes you are requiring users to do the extra work of inferring whether a high crime area means their personal safety is at risk. The user has to search through the incidents for ones which are related to interpersonal violence and make their inference that way. The SpotCrime application does include a “Safety and Security� score for the user based on the data. User reviews, however, say that coverage is limited. With the data coming from 3rd party sources there is no way for users to improve coverage to their area. A better solution was found on the forum of a site called city-data.com (Advameg Inc., 2012). One forum member posted their own safety map for the southern
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Philadelphia area using Google Maps. The information was displayed on the map as color coded zones based on relative safety. The map creator provided a key describing what each color signified and who the map would be relevant to. The target audience was identified as relatively street-smart women in their mid-20s. Responses by other forum members were positive. Many agreed with the overall opinions of the author with small changes of their own. This particular application falls short because it is limited in scope, only covering a single city, and it will never change unless the author updates it. The approach, however, is successful because users are given information which is directly relevant to their needs. The approach itself has been use in other fields such as shopping, dining and real estate searching. Users, however are not usually the sole information providers. Many of these types of applications pull data from other sources. One example of this can be seen in an application called PadMapper (Padmapper Inc., 2012). It is available online and as a mobile app and displays a map of houses and apartments for sale or rent. Users may add their own posts, but the site typically uses Craigslist to populate the map. The innovation of the proposed application is in pairing the approach of first-hand user generated content with popular mobile technology to create a dynamic system of mapping safety risk zones. The collective effort of users will allow for greater coverage where most other safety applications rely on the input from specific sources and organizations. With this method, the greatest coverage will be accessible to those with the greatest concern and the greatest need. The content will be dynamic and responsive as it is based solely on the contributions of users. This application will also differ from other available applications as it relies on users’ perceptions to qualify safety risk rather than crime data. Later releases are also planned to include demographic sensitivity relative to the individual user. As we have already demonstrated a user’s age, gender and other factors may affect perceptions of personal safety. If a user was able to view the opinions of those in a similar demographic group it would result in more relevant information and a better overall experience. Such an approach has not yet been applied to personal safety applications. By giving users the ability to share their opinions in this way we are opening up many possibilities to reveal new trends and expand our understanding of personal
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safety and risk. There is much to learn by observing the perceptions of individuals and how they may correlate to actual risk. If we were to compare a map generated by the Shady Zones approach to a crime mapping application, we can perhaps learn how accurate or inaccurate our perceptions really are. Do we feel safe in places which are actually high risk and worry in places of least risk? Or do we usually have a good grasp on our surroundings? Perhaps we make ourselves more at-risk only because we feel so safe and tend let our guard down. With the development of the Shady Zones application these questions can be explored and their answers applied to everyday life. Technical approach The following languages will be used during the development phase: HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript, XML, SQL and PHP. HTML5 will be used to build the structural presentation of the front-end user-interface. All information to be presented to the user will be written with HTML5. Aesthetics and visual presentation will utilize CSS3 style sheets. There some important advantages to developing for mobile using HTML5 and JavaScript rather than native SDKs (software development kits). An important one is cost. By developing in HTML5 there is no dependency on the Apple App store or Android Market and so no associated fees to be paid. Deployment through these distributors also require more time than through HTML5. The moment an HTML5 application goes live it can be ready for users to enjoy. Users will also enjoy the ability to jump right into the application without having to wait for it to download. The development process itself will be shortened by leaving behind the need to learn new languages, methods and libraries which are overall scarcer in documentation resources than HTML5 and JavaScript. JavaScript here will be used for much of the interactivity of the application. The JavaScript based frameworks, libraries and APIs we will make use of are PhoneGap, jQuery and Google Maps API. PhoneGap will allow us to provide the option to deploy a hybrid native version of ShadyZones through the Apple Apps store or Android Market if requested. Native applications provide better performance than non-native ones. The jQuery library will aid in swifter JavaScript development and more native-like interactions. The Google Maps API is necessary for the application’s map display which is it’s primary feature. It will display points on the map where other users reported
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incidents of feeling unsafe. Paired with the browser-based W3C Geolocation API or native mobile GPS system, users can create their own reports using their own location. In order to both display reports and record new ones the application requires access to a database. The database chosen for this application is MySQL because it is free and open source. MySQL is easy to use, quick to install and is able to meet the performance and scalability needs of our application. Other database options would require more money, more time and the extra power provided would be superfluous. At this stage of development the use of the SQL and PHP languages will script all database interactions and requests. Additional software will be used for the purposes of publishing and testing and include Adobe Dreamwaver CS5.5, FileZilla, MAMP, Adobe Device Central CS5.5 and Adobe Browser Labs. Dreamweaver will be the primary publishing software. Most of the development phase will make use of it. FileZilla will be the FTP client used to transfer the application to a live server during the second half of the testing phase. For the development phase and first part of the testing phase the application will reside locally using MAMP which sets up a server environment on Mac OS with Apache, MySQL and PHP. Testing will require Adobe Device Central CS5.5 to view the application properly across many devices and Adobe Browser Labs will allow us to test across many browsers. With this technical approach we expect that ShadyZones should be supported and tested to run on both the Mac and PC platform as well as the iPhone and Android mobile devices. The testing phase will focus on technical issues such as functionality, loading speed cross-platform support and cross-browser support as well as user-centered issues including readability, accessibility, usability and aesthetics. Qualifications of the team The team responsible for the development of this application will include a project manager, graphic designers, programmers and an information architect. During each phase of development all team members will play a role. The project manger will have previous experience overseeing the development of web projects. Graphic designers will have had design training and demonstrate a high level of skill in the use of all
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necessary software to create visual elements for the application. They will have had experience designing for the web and will employ user interface design best practices. Programmers will also be highly proficient in the software they are working in as well as knowledgeable of the languages, libraries, frameworks and APIs they will be working with. Information architects will be responsible for wireframes, navigational schemas, organizational strategies, database design, usability testing, and written documentation for the project. They will be experienced in the use of all necessary tools and techniques. The team as a whole has had success in the planning, development and deployment of many web projects which make used of all aforementioned technologies. References CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Division of Violence Prevention (February 29, 2012). Violence Prevention. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/ViolencePrevention/index.html Fletcher, P. C., & Bryden, P. J. (2009). Preliminary Examination of Safety Issues on a University Campus: Personal Safety Practices, Beliefs & Attitudes of Female Faculty & Staff. College Student Journal, 43(1), 181-195. Guterman, N. B., & Cameron, M. (1997). Assessing the impact of community violence on children and youths. Social Work, 42495-505. Krug, Etienne G. & WHO (World Health Organization). 2002 World report on violence and health / edited by Etienne G. Krug ... [et al.] World Health Organization, Geneva : HRADC (Human Resources and Skills Development Canada )(February 19, 2012). Security - Perceptions of Personal Safety. Retrieved from http://www4.hrsdc.gc.ca/.3ndic.1t.4r@-eng.jsp?iid=59 The Omega Group. (2012). CrimeMapping – Building safer communities. Retrieved from http://www.crimemapping.com/map.aspx.
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Padmappper Inc. (2012). Padmapper. Retrieved from http://www.padmapper.com. ReportSee Inc. (2012). SpotCrime. Retrieved from http://spotcrime.com/. Advameg Inc. (2012). South Philly Safety Map (Philadelphia, Washington: crime, safe neighborhood, live in) . Retrieved from http://www.citydata.com/forum/philadelphia/965160-south-philly-safety-map.html. Â Appendix Figure 1: Loading Screen with Logo
Figure 2 : Map View with Markers
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Project Timeline The timeline chart below explains the development process we will follow to complete this project. It outlines the progress and devliverables due for each phase. The development prosess will include four main phases beginning with a planning phase where we outline everything clearly, then a design phase where all visual elements are created and approved, then a technical phase where the visual elements are made functional and finally a review and testing phase.
Development Schedule April 1, 2012 - June 18, 2012
PLANNING PHASE DESIGN PHASE TECHNICAL PHASE REVIEW PHASE
MILESTONE
MILESTONE
MILESTONE
Week 1
Weeks 2 & 3
Weeks 4 & 5
Weeks 6 & 7
Weeks 8 & 9
Week 10
Information Architecture
Visual Elements
Page Templates
Functionality Programmed
Functionality Test and Revision
Interface Tests Beta Testing
DELIVERABLES
DELIVERABLES
DELIVERABLES
- database to map connection - preference to map conncetion
- local testing - functionality test
- usability tests - accesibility tests - readability tests
MILESTONE
DELIVERABLES -
research complete user site map features/element outlined database schema info architecture
MILESTONE
DELIVERABLES - home page design - preference page design - map elements design
MILESTONE
DELIVERABLES -
home page html preferences html geolocation database connection google map
MILESTONE
Week 11 Testing Complete Site Launched