Artmind
Youth need access to a creative outlet that improves social and emotional wellbeing.
More than 1 in 3 high school students experienced poor mental health during the pandemic, and nearly half of students felt persistently sad or hopeless. (CDC, 2021)
Background
As a former high school art teacher, I’ve seen firsthand how depression and anxiety has affected young people. Partcipating in the arts has been proven to enhance wellbeing but kids need a way to access quality art exercises in supportive community.
How might we give youth a visual arts based platform to address their emotional wellbeing within a supportive online community?
The Details
Role Lead Researcher & UX Designer
Tools Figma / Procreate / Miro / Maze
Timeframe 4 weeks
Design Process
User Research
Its clear that youth need help coping with the stress of the pandemic.
A survey of parents and kids validated the concept.
100% of the kids surveyed participate in the arts.
75% of parents value this participation because it improves self-awareness and self-confidence, two key factors in mental well being.
Key Findings
50% of parents
stated that they thought an app that combines art and social/emotional learning could be beneficial for their child.
100% of youth
Noted that bullying often comes up when people can comment, and preferred to avoid that feature unless it was entirely positive.
Relaxing, Happiness & Accomplishment
were feelings kids mentioned that they associated with making art.
100% of youth
Would like to be able to see and like other kids artwork.
Competetive Ananlysis
The answer is tons. The market for apps that help individuals improve their mental health has exploded in the past few years. For youth there are apps like Headspace, Smiling Mind, Quiver and Mitra. What I discovered after a deep dive is that there is nothing on the market that focuses on reflective art making as a way for youth to feel better.
What apps are out there already to address mental health?
Problem: Youth feel intimidated by making and sharing their art.
Solution: Provide a Creative Coach to walk them through the process.
Key Findings
Problem: Making art in a vacuum doesn’t provide the feedback and positive reinforcement that youth want.
Solution: Include an online community to share work and a share option for youth to share their work with family and friends.
Problem: Marketplace is saturated with meditation, therapy, mindfulness apps.
Solution: Use art making through self-reflective prompts as a new angle for youth mental wellness.
Persona
This is Jenny. She’s a creative teen with a supportive family who struggles with anxiety.
Jenny lives in San Diego and goes to a medium sized public high school. She has always loved the arts and participates in dance as an extra curricular activity. Jenny has a small friend group, most of whom are in her art class or do dance with her. Jenny also likes to surf because it makes her feel calm. Jenny struggles with low grade anxiety mostly stemming from pressure to achieve in school. Her anxiety causes her to feel unmotivated. Jenny’s teacher suggested she try this daily art app to help her.
User Stories & User Flows
Jenny wants to quickly access the daily prompt and her portfolio of past art.
User Goals/Stories
I want to make artwork that encourages self expression so that I can work on feeling better.
→ I need to see an inspiring prompt.
I want to see what other people create in response to the same prompt so that I can connect with others.
→ I need to see a feed of others users artwork.
I want to be able to look back on my art so that I can see what I've accomplished.
→ I need to see a profile page with images.
I want to receive motivational coaching so that I can get help to continue doing the exercises.
→ I need to see a chat screen to communicate with my creative coach.
Click images below to see user flows for some of the above user stories.
Wireframes
The wireframes reflected a simple flow that was accessible to 10-18 year olds.
Users had a range of comfort levels with interfaces so I needed to design for people with the least experience. This meant very simple flows with few distractions.
Branding & UI
Creativity, embracing mistakes and process/flow were ideas that I wanted to convey in the branding for Artmind.
I started out with a design system that used tints and shades of blue emphasized calm and flow. After further exploration and testing I determined that kids enjoyed a more engaging interface. I added a variety of bright colors and created illustrations that gave the app a fun and playful feel. A hand drawn logo and paint puddles highlight the idea of mistakes being ok and a safe space. Messy paint strokes throughout emphasize imperfections and exploration.
Usability Testing
Usability testing called for changes to the onboarding screens.
I simplified the copy, added more engaging visuals and modernized the colors and button shapes to appeal to youth.
Prototype
Impact & Outcomes
Designing for youth requires a different approach across product, from research to UI. Qualitative interviews are key to understanding where there are specific challenges with usability.
I designed an app specifically for youth, that takes into account the varying levels of experiences with user interfaces that young people bring. I simplified my original sketches several times so that even the youngest user could navigate the flow.
Next steps: I love designing for this user group—they are so insightful. Their ideas for future development include gamification aspects and a rewards system that encourages daily engagement with the app.