User Research

To explore the range of unmet needs in the realm of pregnancy, I conducted preliminary user research

At first, I intended to interview only the pregnant individual. But after a few partners decided to join in, I realized that the partner support aspect was a very, big unaddressed need. I then pivoted our questions to focus on partners and shifted to interviewing couples, first together and then both individually.

I ended up interviewing 6 individuals and 3 couples, and created the following representative user stories and empathy map.

Defining User Needs

From these interviews, the following five stood out as shared, overarching frustrations with the process.

I

Need for increased transparency and certainty about aspects of pregnancy

IV

Emotional and informational support from other expecting fathers who have also gone through the process

Experience Prototypes

After identifying the core pain points, I developed and refined How Might We questions from our user interviews to guide our solution brainstorming.

Task Flow & Lo-Fi Prototype

Following the determination of our solution, I outlined the key tasks and implemented the flow in a low fidelity prototype.

I. ORGANIZING CONTENT INTO CARD STACKS WAS SLOW AND UNINTUITIVE

To get to specific content, users had to tediously swipe through a stack

I replaced cards with modules and swipes with taps. Users could then quickly see an overview of the week’s content and directly click on what interests them

I. TASKS WERE THE MOST USEFUL PART OF THE APP, BUT HARD TO ACCESS

Users had difficulty finding tasks, which were buried in each week’s card stacks and didn’t roll over after the week ended

I revised tasks into its own accessible tab, with 1) the current week's tasks and 2) the user's ongoing tasks across all weeks

I. USERS WANTED TO QUICKLY GET INFO WHEN IN LABOR OR EMERGENCY

Users expressed there was no way to quickly get key info during events like labor

I added a one stop shop emergency button with actionable items such as calling your doctor, opening a map to the hospital, and texting family

I. TASKS PERSONALIZATION

Our evaluators pointed out that our prototype lacked abilities to delete and create your own tasks.

• H7: Flexibility & Efficiency of Use

• H3: User Control and Freedom

I modified our tasks to allow users to type in their own tasks and swipe functionality for deletion.

II. ONBOARDING AND FAQ

Evaluators also noted that additional help resources would be helpful, considering the complex topic that the application covers

• H10: Help and Documentation

• H6: Recognition Not Recall

To help users navigate Pebble with more ease, I added onboarding that explains the key features as well as a FAQs page that covers any pregnancy-related questions and concerns not covered in the app

Final Prototype

Our final prototype incorporates 4 key features that directly caters to partners to help them be more equipped both people in the shared pregnancy journey

LEARN BY WEEK

View relevant information for each current week of pregnancy

COMPLETE TASKS

Track and customize actionable steps you can do to improve the quality of your pregnancy journey

EXPLORE

Search for and find information on specific topics

EMERGENCY MODE

Activate "emergency mode" to access relevant information rapidly during labor or medical emergencies

On top of our 4 key features, I also designed the following flows to complete our application

PROFILE & EXTRA RESOURCES

Access FAQs, saved modules, and your profile

ONBOARDING

Walk through the key features that the app offers

INTERACTIVE PROTOTYPE

FIGMA LINK >>

Summary & Findings

Over 10 weeks, I underwent the entire design process to tackle the problem domain of pregnancy. Through interviewing over a dozen stakeholders, I identified a lack of accessible, understandable resources that empower the pregnant person’s partner to actively understand and and contribute to the process. I designed three iterations, incorporating user feedback at each step, and produced a high-fidelity prototype of Pebble — an app that presents digestible information and recommendations so that partners can better support their pregnant counterpart.

Here are some of my key takeaways from the process:

I. EMPATHIZING AND LISTENING TO OUR USERS

The most valuable steps came from continuously interfacing with users and listening to the needs and desires of the people I was designing for. Although I began this project intending to design a product for the pregnant users themselves, I realized that the more urgent issue actually lay in their partners. Along this line, many of the key features of our app were developed at the direct request of the expecting fathers I interviewed—including the emergency button feature and week to week task suggestions.

II. THE PREGNANCY MARKET REMAINS UNDERSERVED

Despite the growing number of pregnancy apps and technologies, the community still remains vastly overlooked in many contexts and with many unsolved issues. Across our interviews, pregnant people expressed frustrations with the inability to acquire information from doctors, find relevant communities online, and adapt their previous technologies and strategies to their pregnancy. This is even more so for partners and Pebble has opened my eyes to this space and the problems that design can assist in.

Next Steps

For next steps, I would love to conduct more detailed research about the content of the app that would be most useful to its users. Through our interviews, I gleaned insight into the fact that the mental health aspect of pregnant people’s partners is widely and frustrating overlooked in existing resources. In addition, something users mentioned they would find valuable is the integration of a two-pronged user design by developing companion apps for both the pregnant person and their partner. Through this approach, features such as tasks could be synced across both partners’ devices, streamlining communication and sharing of information. By working towards these goals, we hope to find ourselves one step closer to ensuring both partners in a pregnancy feel supported themselves and also feel equipped to holistically support one another throughout their pregnancy journey.