AWARE

Aware is an app for personal growth, created by the 29k Foundation. It offers evidence-based exercises and reflection tools to help users feel better in their daily lives.

The project

The client

The 29k foundation

Timeframe

4 weeks

My role

UX Researcher

UX Designer

Service Designer

Team

5 UX designers

The challenge

Aware sees the highest user satisfaction in its live sessions — guided online group exercises — but many users hesitate to participate. Our task was to understand why and find ways to lower this barrier.

The design process

Empathize

Experience map

In-depth interviews

Observations

Define

Key insights

Behaviour types

Ideate

Brainstorming

Design studio workshop

Prototype

Lo-fi wireframing

Hi-fi wireframing

Test

Preference testing

Semi-structured observations

Empathize/Define

Empathy map

We held a workshop with AWARE to define the target group WHO , the experience HOW , and the purpose WHY . The resulting experience map gave us a clear direction for our user research and served as a guide throughout the entire design process.

User studies

We conducted 19 interviews with existing AWARE users and non-users, observing 8 non-users during onboarding. The goal was to understand motivations, behaviors, and attitudes toward mental health exercises.

Key insights

  • Information about the live sessions is often misunderstood.

  • Clearer evidence behind the group format would increase motivation to participate.

  • Users request a different type of interaction.

  • Engagement would increase for some users if live sessions included recurring themes, exercises, and deeper discussions.

Behaviour types

Our user studies revealed two clear behavior patterns: Security Seekers and Progress Seekers. The former valued safety and control, while the latter sought measurable development and a clear sense of purpose. These insights guided our design decisions.

Ideation & validation

Ideation

We developed solutions based on insights, behavior types, and the guiding principles Human, Meaningful, and Engaging. Seven concepts were presented to AWARE and prioritized together based on user needs, project goals, and organizational constraints. Ultimately, we focused on the five solutions considered most relevant to explore further.

  • Problem: 
    Users didn’t understand that the button registers interest in live sessions, causing confusion.



    Solution: 
    Update the button copy to “Interested” for clarity and better usability.

  • Problem: 
    Several users reported that the information about live sessions was unclear, which caused concern for those seeking security and frustration for those seeking growth.



    Solution: 
    Clear, reassuring guidance on session flow and participant expectations.

  • Problem: 
    Users often misunderstood the live session setup, which may cause concern for those seeking security and frustration for those seeking progression.



    Solution: 
    A short video explaining the setup, agenda, and facilitator introduction to create structure, clarity, and trust.

  • Problem: 
    Several users found the button icon confusing and misinterpreted it as a magic wand or an AI feature.



    Solution: 
    Replace the icon with a recognizable information symbol (“i”).

  • Problem: 
    AWARE already refers to research showing that group-based exercises are more effective than individual ones, but this evidence is not clearly communicated. While users were not discouraged by the lack of evidence, clearer references would increase trust, security, and motivation to participate.



    Solution: 
    Clearly communicate evidence behind the group format to strengthen confidence, trust, and motivation to join live sessions.

Usability testing

We validated our solutions through guerrilla testing and five controlled observations. Users compared the existing design with proposed solutions to assess clarity, perceived security, and motivation to join live sessions.
The results helped us refine information, icons, and overall usability.

Findings

  • All participants preferred “Interested” in the preference test.

  • The initial version caused confusion and was perceived as an error message. After iteration, it was replaced with a more traditional information icon with a green background, which was perceived as clearer.

  • Observed users understood the content but experienced it as lengthy.

    Solution:

    • Use bold headings to clarify text sections.

    • Shorten the text.

  • Several users interpreted the multiple avatars as representing the number of participants, so the icon was changed to a single avatar to clarify its purpose.

  • Users appreciated the video but missed features such as video length, full-screen mode, playback speed, and clearer examples of anonymity.

Result

Learnings

The project resulted in solutions grounded in insights from both research and usability testing. I learned how small details in language and presentation can impact users’ sense of security and motivation, and how important it is to test ideas with users to ensure they actually work.

I also realized that research does not always lead to solutions that can meet every user need. AWARE had clear boundaries for what could be explored further, both due to resource constraints and to ensure the service does not resemble therapy. This gave me a clear understanding of how UX work involves balancing user needs with organizational constraints.

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LET'S GET IN TOUCH!

andreas.tjernstrom@hotmail.com

+46700028152