Designing A People-Centered Convergence Experience
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How can we design a new purpose for experience? “We believe that appropriate and relevant solutions are preceded by a process of systematic inquiry.”
Project Overview This project began with the question “what could an alternate form of a video watching experience be?” Our teams, comprised of college students in the U.S., explored this question using a multi-faced approach to research that focused on the life context of the target users, in this case, their peers. Our exploration expanded upon the original question, positioning it within a broader perspective. Our conclusions are presented as articulated concepts within these holistic and user-centered contexts.
What makes a meaningful “convergence experience”? We believe that appropriate and relevant solutions are preceded by a process of systematic inquiry. Our first task was to understand Samsung’s position in relation to our initial question. We determined that Samsung’s perspective towards product development is best described by its official mission statement, ‘Digital Convergence.’ But what exactly is ‘Digital Convergence’ and more specifically what does Samsung mean when they use the term ‘convergence’? Defined as “a tendency to move together toward one point or one another,”1 convergence has taken on more specific meanings in relation to contemporary contexts. Media analyst Henry Jenkins, author of Convergence Culture, it refers to convergence as the spread of content across multiple media platforms and of its social and behavioral effects. (Jenkins, 2007) We also took into consideration what “digital convergence” means in the daily lives of college students. To determine this, we began by asking students to define the word “convergence” for themselves. Students were first sensitized to the concept of the everyday from a critical standpoint and were assigned readings2 to help guide them. Then, they brought in objects or other references to their daily lives for open discussion. They analyzed their discussion using a pattern reading process (fig. 1) and came to the conclusion that purpose is important to shaping meaningful experiences.
Fig. 1 Student responses were written on sticky notes and organized by theme.
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Example 1: This product is called the Wacom Inkling. What this does is attach to any piece of paper or notebook and enables the user to draw as they would with a normal pen but while simultaneously turning actual sketches into computer files. On the surface this could appear to be the most basic, literal meaning of digital convergence; being the act of turning something non-digital into something digital. By Shaun.
Example 2: This experience is about coming together as a group in a college setting, where ideas and feelings about a current project are being shared. It is also about a time in the day when one is multi-tasking and about to time-shift into being done with school/work. This reflects daily mass interactions, which are more public than private, but internal thoughts still occur. By Kenneth.
In light of our discussion about the significance of ‘convergence’ in daily life, we were able to clarify our research question, moving from “How can we design an alternative video watching experience?” to “How can we design a new purpose for experience?” This newly defined design problem shifts focus from a technical perspective (“What can we make?”) to a purpose driven experience (“What should be made?”) for developing services and products. The new phrase indicates a shift in criteria from technical precedent to user needs, revealing fresh realms of opportunity. Designing a purpose driven experience requires us to understand life contexts of the audience. As members of the target audience themselves, students had prior insight into the daily life of university student. They already had insights into student work, school, transportation and housing situations. These details make for richer data, meaningful insights and more potential opportunities.
How can we design the purpose of experience?
Fig. 2
In order to understand a purpose driven experience, and to be able to ultimately design one, we had to understand how purpose directly effects the actions that people make. This specific exercise (fig. 2) illustrates how redefining the purpose of an experience alters the steps of action taken during the experience. For instance, if you pack your lunch everyday with the purpose of nourishment, the actions that you take are far different than if you pack your lunch to be good for the environment. Choosing locally sourced, organic food, and green-friendly reusable containers are a different set of actions than simply packing a sandwich and apple into a paper bag. Through this exercise students could gain a clear understanding of re-designing an experience by shifting its purpose. Detail of Fig. 2
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Methodology “we are moving from the
3. Implement Solution
design of categories of
1. Formulate Problem/ Opportunity
“product” to designing for people’s purposes” - Elizabeth Sanders3 Designing purpose is a very abstract concept, so in order to do so we adopted a design process tool that has been used to addess unframed problems systematically. We used the Simplex process4, which our students have used throughout their design education at Herron. It consists of eight steps: Problem Finding, Fact Finding, Problem Definition, Idea Finding, Selection, Planning, Sell Idea, and Action. The Simplex process integrates sensitivity to context with user participation, giving us a broader and deeper understanding of needs, desires, affinities, and capacities.
2. Formulate Solution
8. Action
1. Find
Problem
2. Find
7. Sell Idea
Facts
3. Define
6. Planning
Problem
5. Evaluate & Select
4. Find
Ideas
The Simplex Wheel: A complete process of creative problem solving
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In light of our discussion about the significance of ‘convergence’ in daily life, we were able to clarify our research question, moving from “How can we design an alternative video watching experience?” to “How can we design a new purpose for experience?” 4
Introduction
This newly defined design problem shifts the focus from a technical perspective (“What can we make?”) to a purpose driven experience (“What should be made?”) for developing services and products. The new phrase indicates a shift in criteria from technical precedent to user needs, revealing fresh realms of opportunity.
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B A
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Fig. 3
Teams developed stories about their persona’s daily life (A) and analyzed visual events (B).
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Steps 1 and 2: Problem Finding and Fact Finding The goal of steps 1 and 2 of the process was to understand the life contexts of the target audience and to find facts. Students used methods that revealed life contexts through developing personas and articulating narratives that capture the most salient parts of their daily lives. (Fig. 3) Several key findings emerged. Attending a University in an urban setting, the students working on this project almost universally work at jobs and attend school, so their time is split into very defined segments for working and studying. Their daily life has a strong sense of routine. Another significant factor was transportation. Indianapolis is a Midwest American city with a sprawling layout, ringed by a mix of suburbs and farmland. Public transportation systems are limited and not widely used unlike in other American cities, such as New York or Chicago. Students are more likely to use their mobile devices for functions that compliment their driving, such as mapping, or listening to music, rather than as a source of diversion during commutes. Individual device immersion for communication purposes was the third context that was found. Students are most likely to use their mobile devices for personal communication purposes such as phone calls or texting rather than entertainment purposes, such as playing games or browsing the Internet. Students watched videos on their mobile devices infrequently, and stated little interest in doing so.
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Contextual Research Findings
Strong Sense Of Routine Driving AutomobileCentric Device Use Individual Devices Used For Immersion Communication
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pattern reading Data analysis facilitated through the use of visual tools
problem statement The key research question, carefully worded to guide inquiry
problem space The general area of inquiry for the research question.
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Step 3: Define Problem In this step, students analyzed their creations and drew conclusions about their persona’s life through visualizations. The goal of this step is to define the problem by looking for emergent themes or patterns (‘pattern reading’) from the data collected in the ‘fact finding’ step. The result of research informs that “overprescripted lifestyle” is a primary problem space, which cause a series of sub-problems. After identifying the common problem space, each of the seven teams came up with unique problem statements from multiple perspectives. The diagram presents the primary problem space, perspectives on approaching the problem space, and problems statements from each seven team.
problem spaces Overprescribed lifestyle of college students (cause) descrepacies between expectations and reality How might we enable people to customize experiences that lead to increased productivity and better overall well-being.
unanticipated disruption How might we recognize, understand, and respond to spontaneity in our daily lives?
sense of lack of meaning How might we make Taylor’s life richer and more meaningful?
monotonous How might we make Pat’s life more exploratory? How might we transform Ryan’s mundane routine into something he can take meaning and value away from. How might we make Jason’s life less predictable?
low emotional satisfaction How might we create greater positive emotional satisfaction during daily transition periods?
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Step 4: Idea Finding Once each of the student teams had defined their problem statement they moved into step four, Idea Finding. The purpose of this step is to use research methods and tools to facilitate a collective ideation process. Students designed participatory sessions to include their target audiences outside the studio environment. Each student team developed their own unique research methods. For instance, one student team gave participants daily journals that asked, “When in your day have you experienced disappointment or a limitation because what you expected and reality did not match?” Another team created a ‘fort’ structure out of cardboard that participants crawl into. Once inside, participants could respond anonymously to questions written on the walls. Once data was collected each team engaged in collective data analysis to gain insights for new product concept development. These insights were translated and to put to use in the next step when each team began to construct their prototypes.
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Methods and Tools for Co-Creation Co-design refers to the collective creativity of collaborating designers. We used co-design in a broader sense to refer to the creativity of designers and people not trained in design working together in the design development process.
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Step 5 and 6: Evaluate/Select & Plan In these steps, teams test their initial solution ideas, solicit feedback, and refine their work accordingly. After refinement students developed design scenarios, which show how their prototype will function within a life context. The Samsung project gave students the opportunity to engage in a comprehensive Service Design process. In the course of this semester, we learned that in spite of the seemingly unlimited capacity of technology, the key to successful product development lies in its application to addressing relevant and meaningful experiences. This project aimed to propose designs for relevant and meaningful convergent experiences for a specific audience—Midwestern college students. Our timeframe allowed for designs presented as conceptual solutions within specific scenarios. Interaction design and interface design are not included in this proposal, but we anticipate developing these steps in the future. Each student team finalized a concept design, which is further explained by individual booklets provided by each team. The process documents discuss their research findings, product concept and design scenarios.
1 Debord, Guy. Society of the Spectacle. 1967. New York: Zone Books, 1995 (English translation). 2 Stilgoe, John. Outside Lies Magic:Regaining History and Awareness in Everyday Places. New York: Walker and Company, 1999. 3 Sanders, E.B.-N and Stappers P J. (2008) in Co Design, International Journal of CoCreation in Design and the Arts, 4:1, 5-18. 4 Basadur, Min. Simplex: A Flight to Creativity. Amherst, Massachusetts: Creative Education Foundation, 1995.
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Service Design Course Fall 2011 Faculty
Team 4
Curtis Bard Jackie Halpern Kelly Baumen Matt Market
Team 5
Bella Olszewski Eric Gray Jennifer Scharder Kenneth Greene
Team 6
Ashely Allred Joe Wallace Shaun Northern Tabitha Cravens
Team 7
Fushia Skinner Jackie Clossurdo Marina Touch Ross Shaffer
Youngbok Hong Helen Sanematsu
Research Assistant
Emily Stump
Design Teams
Team 1
Cheryl Harnishfeger Derek Adams Jayne Glick John Stas
Team 2
Chad Gerner Jessica Siple Skyler Lawson Vince Romer
Team 3
Evan Strater Kara Schoeff Lindsay Callahan Rebecca Gleason
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Herron School of Art and Design Visual Communication Design Service Design Class Fall 2011
2011. All rights reserved. Commercial production of works based in whole or in part upon the ideas and designs contained in this book are strictly forbidden without the prior written permission of the copyright owners.
How might Aqua recognize, understand, and respond to spontaneity in her daily life?
TEAM PLAYERS Jackie Closurdo Fushia Skinner Marina Touch Ross Shafer
CONTENTS Meet Jamie. Persona A Day in the Life: Narrative + Interpretation Primary Findings
Jamie has room to grow. How might Jamie...?
Jamie has ideas. Research Methods and Tools Primary Findings
Jamie’s ideas inspire. Early Sketches + Prototyping
Jamie’s inspiration in action. Design Scenario
CONTENTS 1
meet jamie.
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PERSONA
Jamie loves to take part in outdoor activities. She and her friends take camping and boating trips when they need a break from the city.
Jamie is a very creative person. She loves Herron, and is very committed to her degree, but she loves all the arts窶馬ot just design.
Jamie is a 22 year old college senior at Herron School of Art + Design. She is from all over the Midwest, and has been living in Indianapolis for her college years. She is very family-oriented, but she loves the city and living on her own. She shares an apartment downtown with her best friend and her oversized puppy. Jamie is a very active individual, and is always up for something new. With work and school, she is extremely busy, but she can always make time for the things she wants to do. She is self-motivated, and can always find something to do.
PERSONA 3
MORNING BRRIIIINNGGG! Jamie is startled awake by the first of several alarms she set for herself last night. She blindly searches her sheets for her phone to hit the snooze button, and promptly falls back to sleep. BRRIIIINNGGG! What feels like thirty seconds later, she is awakened again by the sound of her alarm. She throws off her blankets to face the day, later than usual.
MORNING
Still in bed, she opens her computer to check up on the world. Facebook proves that most of her friends are just waking up as well, so she lays in bed for a minute longer. She wonders what the weather is like, so she looks out her window: rainy. Her new puppy leaps into her bed, attempting to force her to get up—a telltale sign that it is time to take him outside. She finally rolls out of bed, beelining for the kitchen. She decides that it is an “extra cup of coffee’ kind of day, and starts up her coffeepot. While she is waiting for her coffee, she heads back to her bedroom to get ready for her day. She turns on the shower, and starts brushing her teeth while she waits for the water to heat. She jumps into the shower, letting the hot water wake her up. By the time she is fully awake and finished showering, she is running a bit late, so she grabs her towel and puts on some clothes, pours her coffee into a travel mug, gets her backpack, and rushes out the door.
AFTERNOON
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DAILY NARRATIVE
INTERPRETATION Jamie’s morning is all about setting up her day: she checks up on her friends, she makes herself coffee, and she showers and gets dressed. Waking up takes strategic planning; she knows she will not get up to her first alarm, so she sets more than one, drawing out the process. Jamie gives herself time to wake up and relax in the shower, but she does not have enough time to get ready, which leaves her feeling rushed and stressed. Jamie’s morning activites take place in a private space, within a private space (her bedroom and bathroom in her apartment), but she does not take any time to do anything for herself. Her morning routine consists of meeting social expectations, like waking up at a decent hour, taking care of personal hygiene, and wearing clothing.
PATTERN INTERPRETATION 5
AFTERNOON Driving downtown is necessary for Jamie, but not preferable. She lives on a busy street, and it sometimes takes a long time to actually drive out of her apartment complex. She notices a good number of people walking and biking, but her drive to school is just too far to use another type of transportation. When she arrives at school, the parking situation is a mess. Every day, she (and every other commuting student) follows fellow students walking in parking lots in order to take the parking spot they are hopefully vacating. Today, though, Jamie drives around for at least a half hour to find a spot, and she is almost late for class.
SOCIALIZING AT SCHOOL
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DAILY NARRATIVE
She hurries into Herron, and, thankfully, finds that her classes will be fairly easy today—work days in each class. And although she has work to do, she would prefer to socialize with her friends.
INTERPRETATION Jamie’s afternoon is full of the things she is expected to do as a student. She goes to school and is prepared for her classes because she wants to succeed in life. She is motivated, but still easily distracted. She looks forward to her free time after class. Driving and parking on campus takes quite a bit of strategy, and can leave her feeling stressed if she cannot find a parking spot. In fact, it can be a turning point in her day if she is forced to drive around trying to park. It is frustrating, and often ruins her mood.
PATTERN INTERPRETATION 7
EVENING When class ends at six o’clock, Jamie leaves the studio—hungry, because she did not eat lunch. She maneuvers out of her parking spot and drives home to make dinner. When she arrives home, though, she finds that she does not feel like cooking. She pulls out some bread and makes a peanut butter sandwich, and sits down on the couch to relax. She flips on the television, and her roommate opens the door. They watch a movie together while multitasking on their computers. They switch from homework, to Facebook, to Twitter, back to homework until the movie ends. Jamie’s roommate decides to go to bed, while Jamie stays up just a bit longer to plan out her day for tomorrow.
DINNERTIME
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DAILY NARRATIVE
INTERPRETATION The end of Jamie’s day is spent doing the things she wants to do, like relaxing and watching television with her friend. She has no real responsibilities, and she can spend the night however she likes. She spends time on Facebook and other social media websites, catching up with friends and seeing what other people are up to. Social media gives her a way to express herself and to get attention. Jamie’s attention span is short in the evening, while she multitasks with no real direction. She does not fully concentrate on anything, which tends to positively affect her mood. Jamie uses time at night to prepare for the next day. Without interruption, she is able to reflect on the day that is ending, and sets goals for herself.
PATTERN INTERPRETATION 9
daily patterns, categorized: ˚ external factors ˚ personal time ˚ emotion ˚ spontaneity ˚ communication
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PRIMARY FINDINGS
Factors that Jamie cannot control affect how she carries out the remainder of her day.
PRIMARY FINDINGS 11
jamie has room to grow.
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DEFINING THE CHALLENGE
DEFINING THE CHALLENGE
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terms, defined: recognize ¦ to notice that something has disrupted her routine
understand ¦ to accept that something has disrupted her routine
respond ¦ to react to the disruption in a positive manner
spontaneity ¦ an unexpected disruption
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CHALLENGE STATEMENT
How might Jamie recognize, understand, and respond to spontaneity in her daily life?
CHALLENGE STATEMENT
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jamie has ideas.
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CO-IDEATION
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WHAT-IF SCENARIO Asking “what if...?” prompts participants to explore their options and reactions.
STRATEGY This tool was meant to help people realize that when their routines are disrupted, that unexpected obstacle often affects their outlook on the rest of the day—and their distaste for the interruption hinders their ability to come up with an alternative solution. Then, after that realization, finding a way to avoid negativity.
STEP ONE: Write or draw an activity you like to do every day. How do you feel while you are doing this activity (1)? How do you feel if you cannot do this activity (2)?
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Conducted one-on-one, participants were given a blank sheet of paper folded in half, with a simple rating scale at the bottom of each side. First, participants were asked to write or draw an activity they enjoy doing every day, and to rate how they feel during that activity. Next, participants were given a ‘what-if’ scenario that produced an obstacle in completing that activity. They then rated how they feel when they could not do the activity they enjoy. Participants then flipped over the sheet of paper to reveal an identical blank page with a rating scale. They were asked to come up with an alternative activity and to rate how they felt doing that activity rather than their first choices. This process was repeated twice, so that each participant went through three ‘what-if’ scenarios. The three scenarios were then unfolded and placed next to one another, and, together, the participant and I did a small pattern reading of his or her emotional states. After the participants’ initial recognition of how they were negatively affected by obstacles, they were asked how they might be able to avoid that negativity.
STEP TWO: Write or draw what you might do instead of your original activity. How do you feel doing this activity instead of the original?
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CO-IDEATION
Participants got creative with their supplies.
WHAT INSPIRES YOU? STRATEGY Conducted in a group, participants were asked to write or draw what inspires them and why. By asking this, I hoped to gain insight into the aspects of participants’ lives about which they feel positively.
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findings, in short: external factors ¦ Jamie did not realize how affected she is by obstacles outside of her control until she was shown her own patterns.
open-mindedness ¦ Jamie found that she might be able to avoid negativity if she kept a more open mind and practiced flexibility in her life.
new perspectives ¦ Jamie often relies on other people for new perspectives, insights, and advice about her problems
visual evidence ¦ Jamie appreciates the ability to view visual evidence of her activities.
reflection time ¦ Jamie sees that she needs to take time to reflect upon her life.
change ¦ Jamie sees that she has an opportunity to change her perspective on obstacles in her life.
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PRIMARY FINDINGS
time to reflect ˚ change habits ˚ change perspective ˚ keep visual evidence ˚
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jamie’s ideas inspire.
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PROTOTYPING
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EARLY SKETCHES
EARLY SKETCHES CONCEPT ÂŚ RE/ACT
SILVER LININGS TO FOLDER
Each day, Jamie can capture as many positive and negative events as she wants, but at the end of the day she must choose the one (or add a new one) that affected her the most. That particular negative event will be visible to everyone using the pen and capable of collected responses and advice. The more advice she gives, the more exposure her grievances will get, thus giving her the best chance to receive more feedback. Jamie can also collect as much positivity as she would like each day—her own, as well as those happy events that others captured. She can categorize and organize them however she likes. Each week, Jamie receives insights about what is affecting her the most, so that she has the opportunity to recognize what is happening and take the appropriate measures to change it.
FEEDBACK LOOP
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PROTOTYPING
SIMULATED PROTOTYPE In prototyping this concept, we chose to simulate the experience with the class. We handed everyone a folded piece of paper and walked them through the idea of the service.
------First, we had everyone reflect upon their days. What were the things that happened that brought them down? Then, we asked them to condense their negative events into one short sentence, and write it down in the space provided. Next, we had everyone open the fold, to reveal a yellow post-it—the positive. We asked that everyone draw or write something on that post-it that made them happy that day. When everyone was finished, we collected the papers. We passed them back out, randomly, accompanied this time by an envelope with three blank index cards. Everyone was told that they could read the grievance in front of them and give that person some advice about their bad day. They could also look at the silver lining, and if it was something they liked/thought was inspiring or interesting, they could copy it onto one of the blank index cards and place it in their own personal envelope, to refer back to later. Then, everyone could pass around the grievances and silver linings, giving and getting advice, and seeing all the things that make other people happy.
SIMULATION ARTIFACTS
PROTOTYPING 25
jamie’s inspiration in action.
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DESIGN SCENARIO
RE/ACT
It writes. It records. It photographs. Your life, changed by you.
DESIGN SCENARIO 27
JAMIE’S MORNING 9AM—12PM
STARTING THE DAY OFF RIGHT Jamie’s mornings are focused on setting up her day. With this pen, she can start her day off right: she does not need to think twice about the bad weather once she uses the pen to recognize it, she can take pleasure in noticing her delightful cup of coffee, and, if all else fails, she is able to project happy thoughts (silver lining) onto any surface around her while she gets ready.
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Jamie looks out the window and sees that it is raining. She uses the pen to capture an image of the weather, as her first “grievance” of the day.
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DESIGN SCENARIO
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Jamie makes herself a wonderful, hot cup of coffee for breakfast, and has time to sit and enjoy it. She uses the pen to take a photograph of her first “silver lining” of the day.
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While getting ready in the bathroom, Jamie uses the pen to activate her mirror as an interactive surface. She pulls up a saved folder of her own past silver linings and the silver linings that she liked from other people’s days.
DESIGN SCENARIO 29
4
“Traffic is terrible!”
On her way to school, Jamie gets stuck in traffic. She speaks into the pen, recording her second “grievance” of the day.
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Instead of doing work in class, Jamie activates the surface of her desk to browse the silver linings that other people have posted today. She pulls one of them into her folder.
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DESIGN SCENARIO
JAMIE’S AFTERNOON 12PM-6PM
MID-DAY DISTRACTIONS Jamie’s afternoons are often a turning point in her day because she is coming in contact with other people. The pen gives her an outlet that she can rely on. School gives Jamie another space within which to exist, outside of her apartment. During her breaks in class, she can use the pen to fill her time with positive thoughts, especially if something is already bringing her down. After class, she does not want to go home yet, but she does not want to work on schoolwork. She can still be productive by reflecting upon others’ grievances, and giving them advice.
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Jamie is not in a hurry when she leaves class, so, in the hallway, she activates the wall with the pen and pulls up other people’s grievances for the day. She pulls one up to read, and writes advice back.
DESIGN SCENARIO 31
JAMIE’S EVENING 6PM—12AM
NIGHTTIME REFLECTION Jamie’s evenings are for relaxation and reflection. They are her personal time to wind down from her busy days. The pen’s voice activation makes it easy for her to record grievances and silver linings without requiring much effort. Jamie’s evenings are also a time for her to reflect upon the day that is ending, making it a great time for her to choose/reevaluate what (if anything) really brought her down that day. And because she enjoys having loose goals for the next day, it is also the perfect time to discover new insights and think about how she might be able to make a change tomorrow.
7 “Record song. ”
Jamie gets home from class and sits down to relax. She turns on some music, and one of her favorite songs comes on. She activates the pen, telling it to record the song.
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DESIGN SCENARIO
“I could get up earlier to avoid getting upset.�
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INSIGHT S
After posting her daily grievance, Jamie checks in to see if she has any new insights telling her what things are consistently bringing her down, so that she can make changes in her life to be a more positive person.
?
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After dinner, Jamie decides to reflect upon her day. She activates the table and pulls up the grievances she captured, but realizes that what really disappointed her today was not any of those things. So, instead of choosing one of the grievances she captured earlier in the day, Jamie chooses to write something else that really sums up what upset her. Her final written grievance is posted to everyone can see and give her advice.
DESIGN SCENARIO 33