The Problem Space
The Negative Nancies were assigned the unique and exciting domain of 'Change Through Discomfort'. This domain explores ways to induce uncomfortable situations towards a user to invoke change within their habits. Brainstorming amongst the team and research was conducted to discover possible topics of exploration. The topic of sustainable solutions and energy saving was a predominant theme that appeared, and so research and user testing was conducted surrounding Australian households and their energy consumption.
Key Insights
From the research discovered, it was revealed that Australian households
believed they were not being as efficient as they could be. This information
led the Negative Nancies to explore ideas surrounding ways to alert households
when consuming too much energy, and to do so through annoying and discomforting
methods, in order to adhere to the domain.
An initial survey was conducted in order to understand the habits that users
would like to change and what responses annoy them (click
HERE
to see varying responses from users). Upon further exploration surrounding Australian
households and user interviews between younger and older generations, I found
that the younger generation was more aware of being environmentally friendly.
Decisions and Outcomes
With initial surveys and research completed, the results of these findings
led to the following decisions:
- AUDIENCE: Focus on Adult Households
- ENERGY USAGE FOCUS: Light Consumption at Home
- DISCOMFORTING SOLUTIONS: Flashing Lights, Annoying Sounds
With all this information collated, the idea of Energy Saving Emily was
developed - a device that annoys an adult user through lights and sound
in order to gain a response
from them to make a change towards their light consumption at home.
As progress with building Emily continued, user testing undergone and
feedback provided by peers led to certain changes within Emily (click
HERE
to read about feedback).
IMPROVED BEHAVIOUR STATE:
Initially, I wasn't planning on including any
type of feedback to the user about their improvements, however when conducting
user testing, the users provided feedback suggesting that it would be beneficial to
the project. Considering this, I decided upon
a simplified way to alert the user of their changed behaviour as it also complemented the
'Change Through Discomfort' domain in allowing the user to see their change.
INTERACTION WITH EMILY:
Another suggestion from user testing was providing user interaction with
Emily, rather than her being a static object. This led to the implementation of
a switch, where users were required to walk up to Emily in order to stop her
annoying cries for help, which also aided in adding another level of annoyance.
ADJUSTING SOUND: Additional feedback suggested that the monotonous beeping
may not be heard by users, and also was quite lack-luster. With this feedback,
I implemented varying beeping tones, making it easier for users to hear as well as
providing Emily with a bit of personality (inspired by R2-D2).