In this phase of the project, I have been going in deeper into understanding the needs and preferences of LGBTQ individuals regarding mood tracking apps. Although my initial phase was to conduct focus group interviews prior to a survey, I reversed my data collection procedure. I decided to design a questionnaire first in an attempt to get more insights into usability, design/interface preferences, and the importance of LGBTQ-specific content for a potential mood tracking app. I received 28 responses from the questionnaire, and it provided me some perspectives on how such an app can best serve the LGBTQ community. Interestingly, only 35% of my volunteer sample were using a mood tracking app of some kind during the time of the survey.

I chose to conduct a focus group with mental health and rehabilitation counselors as an additional layers of understanding. I’ll admit, it was convenient since I had access to clinicians who could all meet in a room. Their professional insights definitely offered some additional thoughts, features, and functions necessary for a mood tracking app to effectively support mental well-being within the LGBTQ community.

As I transition into the next phase of wireframing, I am considering how to implement all the suggestion and data into tangible design elements. Although an interesting part of the project, it is new terrain for me to think about visual design. This is where I feel less efficacious in being able to carry it out. My plan is to use Figma to assist with the design features of the app.

More to come.