\\ Remember Me
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to design a method to capture what a person is exactly like before they are potentially diagnosed with a disease that can affect their memory. Alzheimer’s Disease causes loss of memory and cognitive disabilities in elders.
People with the disease are unable to share memories with their children or grandchildren and cause these memories to be gone forever. People are diagnosed with mind altering diseases when their grandchildren are adolescents. A young child can't ask many meaningful questions they would want to know the answers to when they grow up. Providing children with the tools to record meaningful memories of their elders would help them carry their elder's legacy when they are gone. This study examines various research methods in order to find a solution that will best bring awareness to this alarming issue. The most impactful way to attain and keep memories of an elder is not only a zine format, but would also be able to carry-over into a website or app form.
Problem & Purpose
Alzheimer’s Disease causes loss of memory and cognitive disabilities in elders. People with the disease are unable to share memories with their children or grandchildren and causes these memories to be gone forever.
The purpose of the study is to develop a thorough questionnaire to capture what a person is exactly like before they are potentially diagnosed with a disease that can effect their memory. It is meant to help the youth remember their elders.
Preliminary Research
People are diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease when their grandchildren are adolescents. A young child can't ask many meaningful questions they would want to know the answers to when they grow up. Providing children with the tools to record meaningful memories of their elders would help them carry their elder's legacy when they are gone.
Research Methodology and Findings
The People
Daily Activity
Survey
The survey was administered through Qualtrix. There were a total of 16 respondents -- 75% of the respondents were between the ages of 18-34, and the next largest group was 18.75%, ages 51-70. Of the 16 respondents, 11 were female and 5 were male.
Takeaways:
1. Participants lacked education regarding Alzheimer's and Dementia.
2. Benchmark questions stumped some participants, but not a majority.
3. Clear want and need for proposed design and would find useful in future.
4. People want to know everything about their elders: from recipes to parenting advice.
Comparative Analysis & Solution Matrix
Storyboard
Proposed Solution & Rationale
1. A collection of educational material that informs the user about the effects of mind altering disease such as Alzheimer's Disease.
2. A compilation of meaningful questions the user would ask their elder and record to keep their memories forever.
An app format would allow for voice recording answers or translating audio to text formats. This design feature would be easier for young children to collect answers, rather than struggling with writing out lengthy responses. With these ideas in mind, the proposed design will focus on educating the user, spark a conversation where memories are remembered, and record these memories in some type of database (paper or digital).
Design Guide
The design must be engaging and user friendly enough to capture the user’s attention. Type will be non-serif and large enough to easily read. Headings will be a larger type and bold, while the questions have a regular type weight. Graphics throughout the app will share the same purple color palette that references Alzheimer’s Association and the disease. Vivid photos are used in tandem with categories and subcategories to draw the user to them. All icons used will be common icons a user will most likely have seen before. The design will have a clear flow that adolescents can easily follow so they can ask their elders meaningful questions. Finally, the educational material will be animated graphics paired with facts about Alzheimer’s that are engaging for an adolescent audience.
Inspiration
The inspiration for the app comes from the three photos shown here. The goal is to have a similar fun and inviting feel as the top left photo, complemented by vivid photos like you see in the top right. The bottom photo has great hues of purple and blue that inspired the color palette.
Ideation & Organization
The prototyping stage began with question ideation. Based on the survey conducted, we know users are interested in all types of sub-categories including: hobbies, origin, childhood, and family traditions. This round of question ideation produced 150 questions for children to ask their elders. These questions can be categorized into 27 sub-categories and 5 overarching categories.
Flowchart
The flowchart below shows the process of the user in sequential order. In summary, after a user is logged in and on the dashboard, they are given several options of recording questions, seeing completed questions, and learning about Alzheimer's disease.
Wireframe
This is the wireframe for the Remember Me app. This is where the look and feel of the app started to form. In the prototyping phase, you can see this wireframe evolve and come to life.
Prototype
Final Design
Poster
Interactive Prototype
