A photo of "Club 300" members, one of the fitness group associate with PG County Senior ID Program
A photo of "Club 300" members, one of the fitness group associate with PG County Senior ID Program
This is a project sponsored by Prince George’s County (MD), Department of Parks and Recreation, during Fall 2020 term at the University of Maryland, College Park. I worked with a group of 5 graduate students as a part of the class "User Experience Research Method".
My role and contributions:
Conduct user interviews, analyze data points, develop several concept designs
The Senior ID program provides seniors in the county a way to easily socialize and stay engaged in the community. The card gave seniors access to various facilities in recreation centers and special classes to keep seniors mentally and physically active. However, many of the county’s seniors were not registered for program. And, current cardholders did not use the benefits regularly.
The Department of Parks and Recreation needed assistance developing an understanding of why this is and how they might be able to increase their senior engagement among cardholders. The question of engagement is particularly interesting given how the pandemic has put a stop to in-person programs and activities in which seniors enjoy participating in.
After several rounds of virtual interviews, the team consolidated and analyzed the various data points into an affinity diagram, journey map, and relationship model. Finally, we worked to develop two main conceptual designs based on our key research and findings takeaways: a Senior Ambassador Program and a website redesign. As this course and project focused on UX research, the conceptual designs are low-fidelity. Regardless, we wrapped up the project with a wall walk with the client to present our findings and ideas.
All interview insights were documented and imported into Miro, where the team organized and grouped data points into a combined user story that emphasized:
1) general satisfaction with the existing program offerings
2) trouble with navigating the website and register for activities
3) the strong bond between these residents and their community
4) the opinion about "what is social", people do not want to spend too much time online
A small part of the huge affinity diagram
From the initial data analysis, the team developed a generalization of a typical user: Agatha. Agatha wants to find activities to keep active during retirement. She likes to do things outdoors and in groups. She wants a program that provides her with flexible scheduling options and a variety of activities.
Together, we explored her journey as a Prince George’s County senior from program discovery to registration, offering exploration, and class attendance. As she performed each tasks within each activity, her emotions and pain points came to light. We were then able to identify specific opportunities for improvement including:
1) improving program visibility
2) provide an easy access of a list of what is offering right now
3) keep updated with all the changes due to the pandemic
4) set up clear instruction about how to sign up and other FAQs
The relationship model reveals the network of relationships in the seniors’ lives and the people who influence them to participate in recreational or physical activities. More specifically, it depicts how the people in the seniors’ lives support or inadvertently discourage their engagement with the Department of Parks & Recreation services. It also shows any emotional connection seniors have with these people and how their connections impact their engagement with the activities and services offered by the department.
Specifically, we found:
1) the initial and continued participation of close friends and relatives most strongly influences the users initial interest and continued engagement
2) the assistance of staff influences the reputation of the program amongst the retirement community. Which, ultimately, greatly influences the user’s perception
3) the engagement of class instructors and class participants influences the user’s continued interest and participation.
Overall, we found that during the pandemic and the transition to online offerings, most users still preferred and continued to maintain their connections in person.
From the Affinity Diagram, we can begin to build our models – that is, graphical representations of our data. The identity model is great for understanding how users see themselves, as well as their core motives, attitudes and emotions. In interviewing both non-iD holders and infrequent ID holders, we felt this model would capture our range of users and offer insights into their preferences when interacting with Senior Services. The model itself consists a description of the identity elements, a user quote, and “give me” statements about user’s needs.
"I AM": The “I AM” part of our model refers to a user’s identity when approaching an activity. From our data we identified three types of users in this category: seniors who are curious, seniors who are proudly analog, and those who are in the dark. The curious senior is constantly looking for new activities and is open to trying new things. The proudly analog senior likes in-person activities and are unfamiliar with new technologies. The in-the-dark senior is confused about whether they are a current ID holder and lacks information about the program.
"I LIKE": The “I LIKE” group describes a user’s preference when doing an activity. We found three types of users that fit this category: the socializer, the outdoor enthusiast, and the family-oriented senior. The socializer likes connecting with other people and doing group activities. The outdoor enthusiast loves to do things outside and is a member of the Club 300 senior walking group. And the family-oriented seniors values family time and doing activities with their children and grandchildren.
"I DO": The “I DO” group refers to activity specific identity elements. A preliminary look at our data shows that seniors have preferences for when an activity is done and the amount of control they have over scheduling. Some of our seniors prefer to do activities in the morning when they feel most mentally engaged. They have other commitments in the afternoon, like church group or grocery shopping, and like to keep to a schedule. They would like to see offerings of activities in the morning and a way to track the activities they schedule.
Our conceptual design ideas are the final product of our research. Through multiple brainstorming and ideation meetings, our team created multiple concepts to add to the value of the Senior ID program.
Senior Ambassadors
Partner with seniors currently active with the Department of Parks & Recreation to help spread the word of the activities and perks of the Senior ID program.
Why did we come up this?
Our participants expressed an eagerness to help other seniors stay active and to find more ways to get involved with the community.
Mental Health Support
Provide access to activities and services to help with seniors’ mental health for those with a Senior ID.
Why did we come up with this?
Some seniors expressed having little social interaction. They can’t see their family and friends, which has left them inactive and feeling lonely.
Website Redesign and Single Signup
Update the Senior ID page on the website to provide content and details on the benefits of the Senior ID card and how to sign up.
Why did we come up with this?
Frustration with the website was a common, unsolicited topic among our participants.
Special thanks to my amazing teammates: Matthew Alexander, Brandon Cooper, Niku Letang and Camila Velloso. They have been supportive and I've learned so much from them. Also thanks to the instructor of this class Dr. Wayne Lutters and the sponsor Prince George’s County Department of Parks and Recreation.