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Get Over It A Process Book Detailing the Problem - and Potential Solution - of Getting Over Someone in an Age of Social Media Applications.
Sterling Walston May 2015
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Photograph: Robby Long
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Photograph: Michael Eldridge
Thank You I am definitely not an island and none of this would have been possible without a network of truly lovely people. First off - my family. Thank you to my parents, who have been there for me every single moment of my life and who have supported me - even in the midst of my very worst decisions. Particular thanks to my brother, Steele, who I can always count on to cheer me up when I’m feeling wretched and who drew the illustrations for this project (and has ALWAYS helped me with whatever I’ve needed - without complaint). Thanks to my older brother, Evan, for always encouraging me and to my two nephews - Finn and Grey - for serving as models and actors in several projects. Thanks to Nain and Taid for listening to my sob stories and providing the tea and cookies. Finally, Simon deserves all sorts of thanks for being the best cuz-cuz in the world; for always being there when I’m most in need of a friend. I have the best friends in the world. Thanks to Sven and Trevah for being there, being silly and always making me feel appreciated and adored. All of my love and thanks to Rosie for helping me, listening to me and making me a bridesmaid. Thanks to Syd for being the best roommate and friend a girl could ask for. Love and kisses to Brandon for being the best (previous) roommate and designer-friend a girl could ask for. Dankeschön to Stuart for constantly making me laugh. And a very heart-felt “Ta!” to those British boys who make me feel special every single visit. Special thanks to my teachers in the UCD Digital Design program, who have always offered their support and have encouraged me to do my best work. All of my love, respect and appreciation goes to the design familia - my classmates - who kept me from giving up and going under too many times to count. I would not be here without you guys. I know I thanked her above, but the MOST EXTRAVAGANT thanks and love to my mum. Without her love and support, I wouldn’t be half the person that I am today. -iii-
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Contents 01 Introduction 03 The Problem 05 The Question 07 Problem-Solving Methodology 08 Research 19 The Solution 38 Measurement of Success 40 Subject Matter Experts 41 Deliverables 42 Bibliography 45 About Me
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Introduction The romantic scene these days is decidedly unromantic - it’s more like a minefield that one is lucky to traverse with sanity intact. So often we (the Millennials) are told that, “Whoever cares the least has the most power.” So we go out there, committed to caring the least in our romantic dealings, because we’re pretty sure that the other person is trying to be just as unaffected. But at some point we become the person who cares the most, we set ourselves up for rejection and we hate ourselves for not being able to “care the least” when that rejection does come. After being rejected, it is then impossible to escape our rejector because he or she has a presence on social media. The heartbreak and sense of rejection is prolonged as we check in on their social accounts. We can’t even “unfriend” them or block them because then they’ll know that we’re so deeply affected that we can’t even deal with their social media presence. Everybody has a heartbreak story and it affects us. It affects our future romantic relationships. We might avoid falling - we might hold back from caring the most - because we know what a complete hell it is to get over someone in this age of social media access. But what if we could tell everyone, “Go out there and fall – go out there and care – because, what’s another rejection? You have the power to protect your heart and to get over those people who care the least.” -1-
“Don’t let anyone rent space in your head, unless they’re a good tenant.” - Unknown -2-
The Problem There was a time – not so very long ago – when, if a romantic relationship ended, then the people involved never had to see or hear from each other ever again. It was easy to walk away and stay away because the only way either party could contact the other was by post, landline or each had to be in the same physical space. Getting over someone in this simpler age? It was cake compared to the emotional hell that my generation is able to put itself through in our current iteration of the Information Age. Not only can you call someone at a specific location, but you can call that someone you can’t get over immediately and either talk to them or have them ignore you. You can text someone right now and agonize over the interminable time it takes for them to respond. And when you’ve successfully avoided calling or texting then there’s always WhatsApp or Facebook or Skype or Snapchat – or a myriad of other social applications – to tempt you into contacting (or checking in on) that one person you know you shouldn’t be contacting because you know it’s only going to lead to more heartbreak. But knowing doesn’t help because our access to technology makes it so damned easy to contact everybody. We need to make it less easy to fall into those pits of temptation – we need a smartphone application that encourages us to walk away from those people that break our hearts and stay away from them.
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“It’s hell. It makes you not want to be “in to” anybody ever again. Because what’s the point?? What’s the point of going through all of this shit? I’m losing my sanity and I’ve started to despise my phone. I can’t help looking at it - to see if I have a message - but it never shows me what I want to see.” - Interviewee -4-
The Question In our current age of perpetual social media access, how can the strategies of behavioral design and interaction design help facilitate the process of “getting over� someone by encouraging the rejected to avoid contact with the person who has rejected them?
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Image
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Problem-Solving Methodology A question like this is problematic because it deals with those elements of our existence that are hard to quantify: emotions. Metrics carry little weight in matters of the heart and those who are experiencing rejection or heartbreak hardly know how to explain their feelings or their actions. In order to find the information I needed, I took a multi-pronged approach: •
I conducted interviews with people who had recently suffered a traumatic rejection. My strategy in these interviews was to let the interviewee talk about the fallout experienced as a result of their rejection in relation to their social media applications. In each situation I did not have a specific set of questions; instead, I kept the conversation very casual and let the interviewee tell me their story, as they would tell it to a friend.
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I conducted an informal study and observed the actions of an individual who had suffered a traumatic rejection and was trying to move on from that rejection.
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I investigated existing services that are intended to help a user move on from a break-up or avoid “time-sink” temptations.
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I researched scientific studies that investigated the psychological effects of interpersonal relationships.
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I looked at the different behavioral design strategies that have proven effective in changing behavior.
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After accumulating all of this information, I created a mindmap of potential ways to encourage a heartbroken user to avoid social media temptations.
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Once I found that my target users were my contemporaries (single people between the ages of 21 and 30), I researched branding strategies that would capture the attention of my target audience. -7-
Research Heartbreak hurts. Literally. Studies have shown that physical pain and emotional pain “light up the same region of the brain under neuroimaging” – the anterior cingulate cortex – and that the majority of people, when given the choice, would rather be physically hurt than be subjected to social rejection.1, 2 The pain associated with the grief following the dissolution of a romantic relationship is described under the “self-expansion model” in which it is natural to human desire to include another person (or persons) into one’s own, larger sense of identity.3 This is commonly referred to as “inclusion of the other in the self ” or “IOS” and once that other person is gone, the loss equates to a loss of identity and leads to emotional pain.4 In order to get over the loss of a romantic partner, one must take steps to exclude “the other from the self ” as much as possible, meaning that that traumatized party must recognize those identifying traits that are singular to him or herself and that have nothing to do with the traits brought to the relationship by 1 Flaskerud, Jacquelyn H., ed. “Heartbreak and Physical Pain Linked in the Brain.” Issues in Mental Health Nursing 32, (2011): 789. 2 YouTube. “The Science of a Broken Heart.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGglw8eAikY (accessed Feb. 19, 2015). 3 Boelen, Paul A. and Marcel A. Van Den Hout. “Inclusion of Other in the Self and Breakup-Related Grief Following Relationship Dissolution.” Journal of Loss and Trauma 15, (2010): 534-547. 4 Ibid, 535.
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the lost partner.5 A study on this topic proved that those who “experienced a stronger sense of continued interconnection between self and the former partner experienced more intense symptoms such as yearning for the ex-partner and difficulties accepting the dissolution [of the relationship].”6 The key to moving beyond the loss of partner and – getting on with one’s life without that partner – is to break that sense of interconnection as effectively as possible. Unfortunately though, in this Information Age of perpetual social media opportunities, we can immediately contact whomever we want in a variety of ways and this reality perpetuates the sense of interconnectedness with a lost love. In order to facilitate the acceptance of a relationship’s dissolution and limit the emotional pain, a potential user must be discouraged from contacting their lost partner and avoid any reminders of that person, so as to gain a new, completed sense of personal identity. This could be difficult to achieve with a smartphone, but I believe that solutions can be found through the implementation of behavioral design. 5 Ibid. 6 Ibid, 543-544.
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Observational Data & Secondary Research The seven stages of grief are often referred to when therapists discuss the stages of the heartbreak that follows a failed romantic relationship. These stages are: Shock and Denial; Pain and Guilt, Anger and Bargaining; Depression Reflection and Loneliness; The Upward Turn; Reconstruction and Working Through; Acceptance and Hope.7 From my primary research, in which I have asked people in the midst of heartbreak to detail their actions related to moving on, I found that in trying to get over someone, my potential user exists at the Reconstruction and Working Through stage and is desperately trying to reach the stage of Acceptance and Hope. Those that I have observed and interviewed discuss the fact that they need to take drastic steps in order to restrict themselves from contacting their lost love. These people know that their hopes for the romantic relationship are never going to be realized, and they aren’t particularly angry at the disappointed expectations, but they desperately want to avoid any “emotional triggers” (contact from their lost partner, news about their lost partner, etc) that will make their new identity and future without their lost love harder to create. In order to avoid these triggers, those I have interviewed have admitted to deleting their lost love’s phone number, text messages, ending (and blocking) the Facebook friendship and – when deletion of certain apps proves impossible – encouraging a friend to create a new password that the heartbroken user cannot know for an extended period of time. My primary research denotes the fact that the heartbroken, as they try to move on from their lost love, currently try to circumvent the temptations that social technology throws in their way. It’s difficult though, to account for all of the social applications that encourage the user to be as social as possible. The heartbroken user tries to control their behavior, but the attempts at self-control run into serious problems because humans “underestimate the effect of 7 Recover-from-grief.com. “7 Stages of Grief: Through the Process and Back to Life.” http://www. recover-from-grief.com/7-stages-of-grief.html (accessed Feb. 19, 2015).
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arousal” when in a calmer, “colder”, more rational state of mind.8 At a moment of extreme temptation, the Reflective System of the heartbroken user is drowned out by the Automatic System and all of the logical reasoning against contacting the lost love falls by the wayside. The challenge for me, as the designer of this potential solution, is to create a situation by which the Reflective System of the user wins out over the emotional Automatic System by using nudges that convince the user that – even though the temptation and negative consequences seem far removed in time (which is the main reason for self-control issues), the consequences are actually immediate and easily imagined by the user.9 I believe that this app I will create should exist in two states: a complete blackout version for those users who feel as though they have absolutely no control over their Automatic System and cannot fight any temptation, and a version that offers “choice architecture” in relation to the temptation of contacting a lost love.10 Nudging is described as “libertarian paternalism” in that a nudge does not restrict or force the chooser to act in a certain way, but encourages the choices that the chooser can immediately recognize to be the most ideal, based on their own judgments.11 I believe that creating this choice architecture will be incredibly valuable for creating a sense of power and confidence in the heartbroken user because selfefficacy (a sense of one’s own personal power based on completed tasks) has been shown to improve by making the ideal choice when presented with difficult options.12 The act of being tempted and successfully avoiding that temptation, will allow my potential users to gain confidence in relation to their ability to cope without – and move on from – their lost love. 8 Richard H. Thaler and Cass R. Sunstein. Nudge. (New York: Penguin Books, 2009): 42. 9 Ibid, 75. 10 Ibid, 74. 11 Ibid. 12 Changxiu Shixiaojun, Zhao. “The Influence of College Students’ Coping Styles on Perceived Self-Ef ficacy in Managing Inferiority.” Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal 42, no. 6 (July 2014): 954-955
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Existing Technologies There are several technologies out on the market today, such as SelfControl and Freedom, which block the user from participating in certain behaviors that the user has classified as being undesirable. SelfControl and Freedom encourage the user to “blacklist” certain websites that the user has determined are “time sinks”.13 The user determines how long he or she wants to be restricted from these websites and the application successfully blocks all access to the sites until the designated time – even in the event if the app is deleted or the computer is restarted. These applications exist primarily for Mac OS X and do not exist on any mobile platforms, but the popularity and availability of these applications proves that technologies that help to regulate our behavior are both desirable and perfectly feasible.14 Though these computer apps serve as inspiration models for my intended design solution, they are limited by the fact that they do not exist on mobile platforms, that they only block websites and that their model exists as an “all or nothing” setup, rather than a suggestive model which uses subtle nudges in order to change the user’s behavior.
There is one particular app currently in existence that is most like an app that I am trying to create. It’s called Killswitch, and though its implementation is limited (it removes all traces of a specific person from the user’s Facebook profile, but only on Facebook), it seeks to avoid those same emotional triggers associated with an ex that I hope to circumvent with my intended app. The app describes itself as a tool to “make breakups suck less” by removing pictures, videos, wall posts and status updates associated with a certain individual; the creators obviously started with the same concept I did in that “outta sight, outta mind is the first step to moving on” and that existence of social media sites makes the actuality of “outta sight” extremely difficult to achieve.15 Killswitch is a great place to start for inspiration, but it does not go nearly far enough in blocking the user from contacting someone they’re trying to get over because even though Killswitch takes care of Facebook, it does not keep the user from texting, calling, using Snapchat, WhatsApp, Skype, Facetime, etc. I believe that this oversight has left a gaping hole in the market – one that my design could potentially fill.
13 Lifehacker. “SelfControl Blocks Internet Distractions with Brute Force.” http://lifehacker.com/5192380/selfcontrol-blocks-internet-distractions-with-brute-force (accessed Feb. 19, 2015).
15 Apple Online Store. “Killswitch App.” https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/killswitch-app/ id596072832?ls=1&mt=8 (accessed Feb. 19, 2015).
14 Lifehacker. “SelfControl Blocks Internet Distractions with Brute Force.” http://lifehacker.com/5192380/selfcontrol-blocks-internet-distractions-with-brute-force (accessed Feb. 19, 2015).
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The existing applications that have elements that are similar to my intended application. Clockwise from the top: Killswitch App: static1.squarespace.com/static/5253327ee4b03949ba51bd5b/52572567e4b0fdbc78294489/52572d1ae4b0fdbc7829b22e/1381444890752/ SelfControl: www.jimkeefe.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/selfcontrol Freedom App: http-//cdn.osxdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/distraction-freedom
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Conclusion Through my primary research, I have found that my design problem primarily affects the Millenial generation, specificially those between the ages of 21 and 30 who are on the dating scene or are newly single. This is my target community and I need to brand my solution in accordance with their values and tastes. Following the secondary research that I have completed, I believe that a smartphone app that “hacks” other social applications and nudges the heartbroken user to make healthy decisions in relation to getting over someone is the most effective solution for my design problem. This initial hypothesis is supported by the secondary research that I have done, which proves the fact that behavioral design can nudge users to make the desired choice, that distraction is useful in limiting emotional trauma. The viability of my idea is also supported by the primary research that I have done so far in that everyone who I have interviewed has discussed the steps they’ve had to take in order to avoid contacting the object of their suffering and affection (deleting a phone number, trying to remember a different number, signing out of – and hiding – social apps, un-friending someone on Facebook, etc.) and would appreciate an app that would make their attempts at self-control easier. An app for a smartphone is particularly necessary because all of the users interviewed so far have described their phone as the main platform for their temptation because it is so available – it’s with the user every moment of the day. In order to create a successful solution, I need to circumvent the problem of temptation where the temptation is strongest: the smartphone. In order to achieve this, I will design a smartphone app that enables and encourages the user to practice self-efficacy using behavioral design so that he or she may effectively avoid contact – and “get over” – that certain someone who brought about the user’s initial heartbreak.
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The Romantically Rejected Johnny met a guy on Tinder that he’s super in to and they’ve had flirtatious exchanges for the past month. Johnny has noticed a recent change in the guy’s behavior: he now takes a lot longer to respond and says less. Johnny doesn’t know what could have caused the sudden change, but he doesn’t want to give up on the guy because they seem like such a good match. Johnny keeps messaging the Tinder boy - asking if he wants to meet up, but Johnny is starting to feel foolish. Johnny suspects he looks desperate and stupid, but he can’t help himself. Why Johnny Needs an App: Johnny needs to walk away and assume that this guy just isn’t that in to him, even though he seems somewhat interested. Johnny needs encouragement to move on and find a different guy, but in order to do that, he needs to stop checking on this current guy’s Tinder account activity.
Tia
27 Student & Freelance Writer
Johnny 21 Student
Tia has it bad. She wasn’t looking to get in to any sort of relationship: her main priorities were finishing school and improving her writing. Along came a guy from her extended group of friends who said and did all of the right things. Unfortunately, this guy was only interested in hooking up a couple of times before moving on to the next conquest. She knows that he’s bad for her, but she became really quite enamored with him and can’t figure out how to get back to her previous sense of equilibrium and confidence. They follow each other across all a variety of social media applications, so she is constantly subject to emotional triggers throughout the day. She feels like she can’t block him because then it would become clear that he’s seriously affected her. Why Tia Needs an App: She needs to expunge the hustler’s presence from her life right now (and gain some lost confidence) without him knowing that he has affected her so horribly. -16-
Photos with Creative Commons licenses accessed on Flickr. Flickr Accounts: j-NO, micadew, Adam Jones, Bill Dickinson
Christina’s boyfriend of ten years recently ended their relationship. Christina is devastated. Deep down, she knows that there’s no hope of them getting back together and she must move on, but she can’t. In her saddest moments, she finds herself texting her ex and telling him that she misses him. Whenever she feels like she’s making some progress, he will contact her and the sense of loss will start all over from the start. She also obsessively checks his social media accounts to see if he’s found someone else. In order to move on, she needs to not see or hear from him for a significant period of time - but she definitely wants to know if he does contact her, it’s just too hard to deal with him right now.
Christina
30 Museum PR Manager
Why Christina Needs an App: In order to create a new identity for herself, Christina needs to completely sever ties with the old identity that her ex represents. She is ultimately unable to do this because he’s only a click away on her smartphone.
Alex recently broke up with his girlfriend, who he had been dating for three years. It was an amicable split, but breaking up was definity her idea. He feels that it’s probably for the best, considering their history of instability, but every so often he finds himself checking up on her social media accounts: Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Every time he does this he gets pretty annoyed that she seems to be so unaffected by their breakup and seems to be having a better time of it than himself. He knows that he should stop checking alltogether, but he can’t seem to help himself. He’s considered deleting her as a friend, but he knows that would create unnecessary drama: she would notice and comment on it. Why Alex Needs an App: Alex knows that it’s not healthy to check up on the activity of his ex, but - as the rejected party - he wants to make sure that she’s having a worse time than he is. Whenever he finds that this isn’t the case, he feels extremely frustrated and stressed, which definitely isn’t healthy. -17-
Alex
25 Contract Agency Recruiter
“It needs to be a life-style change, not a sudden crash-diet. That’s why I can never delete guys’ numbers - I have to give them to [my friend] because I don’t ever like that feeling - that empty pit in your stomach - that I can never contact them again.” - Interviewee
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The Solution My primary research proved that the majority of my fellow Millennials are pretty useless at staying away from the social media accounts of their romantic rejectors. The strongest social media temptations lie in the ease of accessibility provided by the smartphone and the solution must exist on the smartphone as well. The solution is a mobile app that uses gamification (a point system) and incentives to encourage the user to avoid contact (and as a result, the negative emotional triggers that contact brings about) with the person that they are trying to get over. The app is known as “Get Over It” and is intended to change the user’s natural, automatic behavior while also serving as a diversionary force by bringing a sense of fun and playfulness to the user experience. The styling of the app emboldens the user’s confidence and sense of self-worth through the use of stylized characters and color theory. This app is fun, encouraging, assertive and irreverent; the styling of the app is intended to encompass these qualities while also reflecting values of the Millennial community.
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Mind Mapping
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Wireframes
This flow diagram represents the initial setup that the user must complete in order for the “Get Over It” app to monitor the user’s behavior across a variety of social media apps. Within this setup, the user is also encouraged to connect with friends so that the friends may also monitor the user’s behavior and act as a deterrent through the “spotlight effect” of behavioral design. A system of wagering with the user’s friends is intended to act as a further incentive. -22-
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Wireframes
This flow diagram represents the interactions that the user can expect to encounter if he or she attempts to contact the person they’re trying to avoid. These wireframes also account for the projected interactions of the user’s friends and the rejector’s attempts to initiate contact with the user.
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Flow Diagram
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Branding As I started to brand the components of my application, I looked to some expert writings and found that a successful brand is one that best fits within its given space and that that space is dictated by its intended community”.1 As stated earlier, my Get Over It app is intended for a subset of the Millennial Generation: 2130 year-olds who are unattached and out on the dating scene. This generation – my generation – appreciates direct, “sans -fluff ” advertising, is distrustful of anything considered too “mainstream”, has a disdain for arrogance (or exclusivity) and appreciates threads of nostalgia.2 With this in mind, I wanted to subtly reference elements that were popular during our childhood and that are popular today. The symbols of a brand need to be compelling – buying decisions are based more on “symbolic cues” than any other component.3 I had the visual style figured out, but I needed to come up a compelling logo that would get the attention of my target community, while also communicating the right information. I kept coming back to the logo for Majora’s Mask, a video game every boy played, growing up. It was a heart, but it was also powerful. My Get Over It logo is intended to serve as a touchstone to that gaming community while also imparting strength and steeliness in the aide of a distressed heart.
Adventure Time is huge amongst people my age – everybody knows about it. Anything that is illustrated in a similar style becomes very popular and I decided that my app should utilize a reminiscent style for its characters. I believe this style is so popular amongst my contemporaries because it draws upon those qualities mentioned above: the drawings are reminiscent of the cartoon drawings of our childhood, they are simplistic (which is opposite to the slick presentation that corporations are perceived to present) and there is a quality of irreverent fun. I wanted to bring that same sense of irreverence, fun and nostalgia into my branding because it has proven so successful, but I also wanted to depict characters that represented protection. An alligator, ankylosaurus and sea-urchin were chosen for their protective features and they have been illustrated in such a way so as to create an emotional connection between the user and the app. The characters and branding represent my community’s style, interests and appreciation for nostalgia and irreverence.
1 Marty Neuemeier, The Brand Gap. Berkeley (Peachpit, 2006), 151-152. 2 Marc Gobé, Emotional Branding (New York: Allworth Press, 2009), 21-23. 3 Neuemeier, The Brand Gap, 150.
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Image Source: vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/jpl-live-the-legend/images/d/ ddAnkylosaurus.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20121212142822
Image Source: www.kireifood.com.sg/system/ckfinder/ userfiles/images/Uni%20shell.png
Image Source: vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/jpl-live-the-legend/images/d/dd/Ankylosaurus.jpg/ revision/latest?cb=20121212142822
Image Source: img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130919071026/logopedia/images/archive/d/dc/20130919071315! Adventure_Time_Logo.png Image Source: 25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m89rdqWXQr1qbgblno6_1280.png
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The Branding Process
Working with the Illustrator
From the outset, I knew that - whatever form my solution happened to take - I wanted it to be inclusive of all genders and sexual orientations. As I brainstormed with a group of fellow designers, they urged me to avoid branding with traditionally feminine colors because everyone suffers from the fallout of romantic rejection - even heterosexual men. When I thought of the character “guides” that I wanted to employ, I knew that I wanted them to be non-gender-specific, so that anyone could associate their identity with that of the characters. For the logo, I knew that I needed to utilize a traditional representation of a heart because of our culture’s associations with that symbol as a signifier of romantic love and the part of the brain that deals with emotions and feelings. However, I also knew that I needed to bring something extra to the heart - a shield or covering that could impart a sense of protection and strength.
Luckily, my brother was the illustrator on this project, and so, our collaboration process was extremely smooth. I would discuss my original ideas with him, such as creating an 8-bit heart that the user would attempt to build back up by gaining points. The different “bits” or blocks would then be different characters. He worked on a few of these for me, but as my solution changed with my research, I told him that I wanted to keep the Adventure Time style, but that I wanted the app’s characters to represent (and visually portray) increasing levels of protection. The original one-bit block characters just weren’t signifying anything related to protection, strength or steeliness of character. Instead, I decided that the app’s characters needed to be characterized versions of animals that had evolved with physical defense systems. I ultimately came up with three animals: an alligator whose protection resides in its teeth, an ankylosaurus whose protection resides in its back, horns and wrecking-ball of a tail and a sea-urchin whose protection resides in its multitude of poisonous spikes. The first version of these characters that my brother produced weren’t quite right - they looked too similar to the illustrations of Adventure Time and didn’t quite portray the personalities that I had hoped to depict. After we discussed this problem, he then produced another round of characters that were exactly what I wanted.
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Typography & Colors In keeping with brand elements of nostalgia, assertiveness and the protective casings of the heart from the main bodies of the irreverence, I wanted to use a combination of fonts and colors animals so as to differentiate (and call attention to) the protective that played upon these qualities. elements on the brand logo and on the avatars. The use of the stylized typeface Tesla Regular for the brand name is intended as a reference to vintage video games. In this typeface, the name, “Get Over It” is meant to visually echo the traditional “Game Over” seen at the end of many video games. The term, “Get Over It”, along with this visual homage, is meant to serve as a stylistic cue that encourages the user to appreciate that a line has been drawn and that there’s no going back to their previous state of feeling powerless, pathetic and rejected.
Red was chosen as one of the main brand colors because of its association with “passion, desire and love” within our society and I chose a light red because a highly-saturated dark red looked garish
when paired with the gold.5 I wanted to keep to keep the brand’s light red color away from the pink spectrum so that both men and women within the target community felt comfortable using the app. Red is considered to evoke an energizing quality and I wanted to bring that sense of energy to the user, while also dialing back The use of Sweeper Regular (for the secondary headings) the saturation to avoid overly-aggressive connotations.6 is also meant to visually represent this idea of strength and assertiveness; it has a feeling of punk-ish aggression, while also A dark gray was chosen for its unemotional qualities.7 This is used retaining a handcrafted quality that fits in with the hand-drawn as the base, background color against which the other colors can characters of the brand. Gotham Medium is used in the app’s pop. The ambiguous nature of gray is also useful for its non-gender displayed messages to the user. It was chosen for its readability, specific connotations. It is neither masculine nor feminine, so all contemporary feel and its inspiration from the historic legacy gender orientations can feel at ease associating themselves with of New York City’s handmade lettering.1 Gotham Medium is the color. perfect for the fact that it presents a “tone that’s assertive but never imposing...confident but never aloof ”.2 The spot colors are to be used with the different brand characters on a very limited basis. The bright green is to be used with the The main brand colors of the app were chosen for their alligator; the rust with the ankylosaurus; the electric indigo with representational and symbolic qualities. the sea-urchin. Each of these colors are meant to be caricatured color representations of the animals’ natural coloring (the color Gold was chosen for its empowering qualities - for the fact that of an ankylosaurus is practically unknowable, currently). These gold has been synonymous with wealth and power throughout colors are meant to differentiate the characters (and their associated the history of human civilizations.3 It is meant to be emboldening levels) when necessary, while also bringing a slightly punk aesthetic because it’s associated with success, triumph and value.4 The (irreverence) and sense of fun. hope is that the user’s sense of value and commitment to success will by inspired by the gold color. Also, gold was chosen for its metallic properties; a visual contrast was necessary to offset the 1 Hoefler & Co., “Gotham,” Fonts by Hoefler & Co, (2015), http://www.typography.com/fonts/go 5 Ibid. tham/overview/ (accessed April 1, 2014). 6 Ibid. 2 Ibid. 7 Ibid. 3 Herbert Barry. “Gold,” Virginia Law Review, 20, no. 3 (Jan. 1934): 263. 4 Sanida Gogic, “Understanding the Meaning of Colors in Color Psychology,” Al-Rasub, (April 2015), http://www.alrasub.com/understanding-meaning-colors-color-psychology/ (accessed April 1, 2014). -34-
Brand Headlines Tesla Regular
Secondary Headings Sweeper Regular
Copy
What the hell ARE YOU DOING?? You’re going to lose points! Gotham Medium
Main Brand Colors
Spot Colors
R205 G163 B73 C16 M32 Y82 K5
R36 G31 B33 C75 M68 Y67 K9
R240 G73 B80 C0 M86 Y65 K0
R116 G233 B75 C0 M52 Y96 K0
R89 G89 B89 C16 M32 Y82 K5
R111 G0 B255 C73 M79 Y0 K0
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“Where’s that app when you need it?! Just went and checked up on that girl’s Instagram, but I didn’t regret it too bad. She posted a pretty hideous selfie and she’s still alone so... hahaha!” – Interviewee
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Square, Metallic Packaging
Slick, Plastic Exterior
Angled, Repeating Pattern
Packaging The concept of my mobile app has proven to be a hit amongst my target audience and I am convinced that single Millennials, who are hurting after a romantic rejection, would buy it. The next problem I sought to solve was how to package and market the product in a physical space so it would generate interest amongst my target users and they would feel compelled to investigate the app further on an on-line store.
I decided I could best grab the target user’s attention by playing off of the idea of “protection” and designing a package that was reminiscent of the condom packaging that my generation is so familiar with. Ultimately, I wanted to bring the app’s sense of fun in to the packaging and cause people to say, “What the hell is this?” If I made my contemporaries laugh and appalled my grandparents then I figured I was on the right track.
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Measurement of Success Measuring the success of “Get Over It” is difficult for the reason that the app needs to monitor the input and actions of the user in other social media apps and that is not possible with the current technology of mobile operating systems. Successful testing of a prototype would also be highly dependent on the emotional state of the user: the test subject must have suffered
a recent romantic rejection and must be emotionally anguished over the rejection. Due to the difficulty of successful user testing, I decided to test the popularity of the app’s concept and branding by monitoring the reaction to “Get Over It” in the target community for which the app is intended.
App Concept
76%
...of those interviewed and surveyed were adamant that they could use an app like “Get Over It” or could have used it in the past few years.
App Branding
97%
....of those surveyed responded enthusiastically to the brand characters of “Get Over It”.
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Effectiveness of an Extreme Wager
60%
...of the (currently heartbroken) interviewees suspected that the threat a really extreme bet would keep them from contacting their rejector.
Effectiveness of a Tell-All Message to the Rejector
100%
...of the (currently heartbroken) interviewees suspected that the threat of a message sent to their rejector - detailing their unsuccessful, “pathetic� attempts to avoid their heart-breaker would keep them from contacting their rejector. -39-
Subject Matter Experts Juan Sanchez - Designer & Partner at Tack Mobile Juan is the lead designer at Tack Mobile, a company that specializes in mobile technologies across connected devices. He was chosen as my SME for his knowledge in the design of mobile applications and his understanding of gamification within those apps. We discussed the feasibility of my application and the the market interest in therapybased apps. He was also kind enough to review my wireframes and provide feedback. My sincerest of thanks to Juan for his help on my project.
Sunny Gazell, M.A. - Psychotherapist Sunny is a psychotherapist at a practice in Greenwood Village and she utilizes techniques of cognitive behavioral therapy to help her patients. We discussed the strategies and tools that she encourages her patients to use to build confidence or to move on from a person or a trauma. We discussed the power behind the psychological effects of self-efficacy and its importance in building confidence. She also reviewed my concepts on changing the user’s behavior and provided other ideas that have proven successful with her own patients. My sincerest of thanks to Sunny for her assistance on my project. -40-
Deliverables The items in the following list will be presented at my graduating class’ B.F.A. thesis show at the RedLine Gallery in Denver, Colorado.
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Process Book: this thing that you’re reading right now.
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Motion Demo Piece: a motion piece that advertises and explains the Get Over It app that I have designed.
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Take-Away Piece: a package that has the Get Over It logo sticker inside.
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Exhibit Display: exhibit graphics and a monitor to display my motion-demo piece.
• • •
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Bibliography Barry, Herbert. “Gold.” Virginia Law Review, 20, no. 3 (Jan. 1934): 263-306. Boelen, Paul A. and Marcel A. Van Den Hout. “Inclusion of Other in the Self and Breakup-Related Grief Following Relationship Dissolution.” Journal of Loss and Trauma 15, (2010): 534-547. Changxiu Shixiaojun, Zhao. “The Influence of College Students’ Coping Styles on Perceived Self-Efficacy in Managing Inferiority.” Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal 42, no. 6 (July 2014): 949-958. Flaskerud, Jacquelyn H., ed. “Heartbreak and Physical Pain Linked in the Brain.” Issues in Mental Health Nursing 32, (2011): 789-791. Gobé, Marc. Emotional Branding. New York: Allworth Press, 2009. Neumeier, Marty. The Brand Gap. Berkeley: Peachpit, 2006. Thaler, Richard H. and Cass R. Sunstein. Nudge. New York: Penguin Books, 2009. Apple Online Store. “Killswitch App.” https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/killswitch-app/ id596072832?ls=1&mt=8.
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Hoefler & Co. “Gotham.” Fonts by Hoefler & Co. (2015): http://www.typography.com/fonts/go tham/overview/ (accessed April 1, 2014). Lifehacker. “SelfControl Blocks Internet Distractions with Brute Force.” http://lifehacker. com/5192380/selfcontrol-blocks-internet-distractions-with-brute-force. Recover-from-grief.com. “7 Stages of Grief: Through the Process and Back to Life.” http://www. recover-from-grief.com/7-stages-of-grief.html. NPR. “Apps Block Social Media Because Users Can’t Stop Themselves.” All Tech Considered. http://www.npr.org/blogs/alltechconsidered/2013/07/23/204848805/distractions-in-thedigital-age-call-for-apps-to-block-sites. YouTube. “The Science of a Broken Heart.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGglw8eAikY.
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“So then there was the Greek, Socrates, he was great... He invented questioning. Before Socrates, no questioning. Everyone sort of went, ‘’Yeah, I suppose so.” – Eddie Izzard
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About Me I am innately curious - about everything and everyone. I want to know the “why� behind our societal structures and our individual machinations. I am interested in stories: the stories we tell others and those which we tell ourselves. I want to solve problems by designing effective interactive systems through the strategies of behavioral design. I was born and raised in the mountains of Conifer, Colorado, but a large part of my identity owes itself to British comedy and the British appreciation for a well-told story. Stories have the power to create empathy between the teller and the receiver: they have the power to connect all of us together - within stories we can find answers. As I go forward, I hope to listen actively to those stories that I am told so that I may then find the most perfect solutions. Ultimately, I always hope to make people laugh. I figure this life is hard enough as it is and I am very much convinced that there can never be enough mirth in the world.
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