Opposite Pen Pals' Documentation
Title of prototype
Opposite Pen Pals
Thesis area of concern
Facilitating interactions between strangers who come from different racial backgrounds. I am exploring ways in creating a space where people can discuss race, racism and identity to build a vocabulary for constructive conversations.
Thesis concept thus far
My prototype connects strangers who share a mutual friend and have them interact with each other for one week through a series of prompts. They start out not knowing what the other person looks like. The prompts start out pretty neutral but towards the end they get harder to answer.
Prototype interaction
Everyday both participants exchange a picture of their life based on the prompt. An example of a prompt would be, “Take a picture of your breakfast” or “Take a picture of an object that best represents you”. The last prompt asks both users to reveal themselves.
Summary of what worked well, and what didn't
Good
Users were curious enough to engage with each other
Wasn't too disruptive in their schedule
Low barrier to entry
Not too confrontational
Felt safe
Bad
Prompts weren't enough to get a sense of their pen pal's identity
No opportunity for other types of communication
No way of measuring success
Takes commitment
Forget about prompt so I have to send out reminders
What you learned about your intended users from interaction with prototype
It's a fun experiment but the value of the surprise element quickly fades after they receive the image. I'm not even sure my participants still think about the experiment after its over.
Things to work on next, if you continue with this idea
I want to still experiment with prompts to see how personal I can get without it being too intrusive. Also I want to think of ways to facilitate more engagement and communication between users. Have them explain the meaning behind their pictures or allow them to ask each other questions.
What the mobile version could look like
Currently testing through text messaging
Documenting one of my participants taking a selfie