2024 WMU Graphic Design Senior Thesis
by Sydni Gothard
Thesis statement
Meeting new people can be exciting, but this excitement can quickly be ruined when women must be fearful of stalking, drink sedatives, and other forms of harassment. Beam Buddy allows the app user to locate participating restaurants, discreetly notify staff about harassment, and provides informational resources to help the individual and others navigate these difficult situations.
Beam Buddy main navigation pages.
Restaurant participation window stickers
These stickers let app users know without searching on their phone that they are dining at a participating restaurant.
Bathroom informational cards with a QR code.
These informational cards can help women better understand the various forms of harassment and find helpful resources.
Thesis Presentation
Introduction
When approaching the Thesis, I knew that I wanted to create something that would help people in some sort of niche way. With there being so many apps on the market, I had to ask myself “how would I make this app unique?” I wanted my thesis to answer a problem that may have been overlooked. I Finally decided that I wanted to find a solution to the answer of “How can restaurants and bars aid in the prevention
of sexual harassment and assault?”
Project Goals
The goal of my thesis was to create an additional tool to aid in women’s safety. It may not answer all the issues, but I believe that bars and restaurants taking a stance on harassment prevention and having more people learning how to safely intervene may make a difference.
Audience
The targeted audience for this project would be college age women between the ages of 21 and late 20’s. The app would be especially useful to college students who are new to legally drinking in public places and may not know how to navigate these difficult situations.
Research process
My research began by exploring the top women’s safety apps within the app market. This was to gain a better understanding of what is currently working, key features, and by reading reviews on what app users felt like was missing. I first consulted with Felicia Crawford, Western Michigan University’s Title 9 coordinator. She was able to give me a better understanding of what college age students may need within an app. Such as ways to safely intervene as a bystander and how to use directly communicative language. The second person I consulted with was Daylan, the Old Goat Tavern’s newest manager. Daylan has worked various positions within the restaurant such as a server, bartender, and cook. He was able to give me a better understanding of what restaurants would need on their side of the app. Such as better app user identification, the restaurant being able to see reviews to better adjust how they handle situations, and some way that ensures that bars can filter out people who choose to misuse the app for false reports.
With all of these factors considered, when downloaded Beam Buddy displays a network of participating bars and restaurants. This ensures the app user that they are dining at an establishment that is dedicated to the safety and well-being of their customers. The restaurant can easily identify app users based on their profile description. The profile includes an updated photo, a code word, and typed description of the individual. The app is discrete and with its user-friendly interface, the Beam Buddy app can quickly contact the establishment when an individual needs assistance. The app user can also learn more about how to identify harassment, bystander intervention, and gain knowledge from the resource page.
Research Sources
Photos 1 and 2: bSafe safety app home screen and unique safety features.
Photos 3 and 4: Safety exits are used on information sensitive websites where the user may be concerned about someone checking their screen or internet history.
Photos 5 and 6: Informational cards that educate others and provide helpful organizations and helplines.
Photos 7: Defines and gives examples of the various forms of harassment.
Photo 8: The psychology of color was important to understand how certain colors make viewers feel.
Design Process
Hand drawn sketches of app icons, and important screens
Wireframe sketches help to gain a better understanding of the naviagtion of the overall app
Direction 1, Direction 2, Final Direction
Final Direction. The Beam Buddy color pallet was heavily inspired by April's Sexual Assault awareness teal ribbon
which is used as a symbol for their cause.
The brand guide defines the overall look of Beam Buddy's identity
Test the Beam Buddy prototype above!
Reflection
In conclusion, there are countless resources and organizations dedicated to education, prevention, and resources for sexual harassment and assault. The outcome was a working app that could be used to notify and educate. If this project were to be continued, I would like to test the usability between an actual restaurant and an app user to gain more insight into what additional changes would need to be made to make Beam Buddy a reality. My strengths within the project were my willingness to try various design directions. Although I had some functionality issues along the way, I’m willing to learn more about app design and work through those problems. Overall, I believe that Beam Buddy could make a difference.
Resources
Gowmu. (n.d.). https://go.wmich.edu/s/article/AlcoholEDU
Harassment prevention student Training Modules. Gowmu. (n.d.-b). https://go.wmich.edu/s/article/Online-Training-for-Students
"Yeah, We Serve Alcohol, but . . . We Are Here to Help": A Qualitative Analysis of Bar Staff's Perceptions of Sexual Violence https://www.proquest.com/docview/1806429539/fulltextPDF/8B56C236F8AF4F02PQ/1?accountid=15099
Michigan State Police, Criminal Justice Information Center, Michigan Department of State Police, & Michigan Incident Crime Reporting Unit. (2021). 2021 Crime in Michigan Annual Report [Report]. https://www.michigan.gov/msp/-/media/Project/Websites/msp/micr-assets/2021/2021_Crime-in-Michigan.pdf
Harassment | Office on Women’s Health. (n.d.). https://www.womenshealth.gov/relationships-and-safety/other-types/harassment
History of Sexual Assault Awareness Month. (n.d.). National Sexual Violence Resource Center. https://www.nsvrc.org/saam/history
https://wmich.edu/sexualmisconduct/education
Collins, E. G. (2021, August 27). Sexual Harassment. . .Some see It. . .Some won’t. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/1981/03/sexual-harassmentsome-see-itsome-wont
FAQ about calling 911. (n.d.). 911.gov. https://www.911.gov/calling-911/frequently-asked-questions/
Cindy. (2024, January 16). The Impact of Light vs Dark UI on User Experience. Snappymob Blog. https://blog.snappymob.com/the-impact-of-light-vs-dark-ui-on-user-experience
https://wmich.edu/healthpromotion/programs/bystander
The BSafe Safety App - Never walk alone. (n.d.). https://www.getbsafe.com/bsafe-app
Color Meaning and Psychology – Graf1x.com. (n.d.). https://graf1x.com/color-psychology-emotion-meaning-poster/
National Sexual Violence Resource Center. (2017). Sexual Assault Awareness Month overview. https://www.nsvrc.org/sites/default/files/2018-01/about_saam2018_final508.pdf
Powell, R., & Powell, R. (2016, November 1). How This Poster in a Women’s Restroom at a Bar Cleverly Combats Sexual Assault. Adweek. https://www.adweek.com/creativity/how-poster-womens-restroom-bar-cleverly-combats-sexual-assault-174370/
Facebook. (n.d.). https://www.facebook.com/baktisiswakumpulan1/posts/pfbid034GmXewNPBAQNe8eeq9UcxNfjms1UcZj6DgmJzjv1D2iMDHYosRgpmWk5khxemrmml
oal goat tavern reviews - Google Search. (n.d.). https://www.google.com/search?q=oal+goat+tavern+reviews&rlz=1C5CHFA_enUS988US988&oq=oal+goat+tavern+reviews&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIKCAEQABgFGA0YHjINCAIQABiGAxiABBiKBTINCAMQABiGAxiABBiKBTINCAQQABiGAxiABBiKBTINCAUQABiGAxiABBiKBTINCAYQABiGAxiABBiKBTIKCAcQABiABBiiBDIKCAgQABiABBiiBNIBCDM5OTNqMGo5qAIAsAIB&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#lrd=0x881777b80261b1ad:0x47a3a4b1cc6528c1,1,,,,
https://wmich.edu/equity/directory/crawford
National Sexual Violence Resource Center. (n.d.). National Sexual Violence Resource Center. https://www.nsvrc.org/
Donation. (2023, September 25). Home - Equality Michigan. Equality Michigan - Michigan’s Anti-violence and Advocacy Organization Proudly Serving the LGBTQ and HIV Affected Communities for Over 20 Years. https://equalitymi.org/
Home | MCEDSV. (n.d.). https://mcedsv.org/
Harassment | Office on Women’s Health. (n.d.-b). https://www.womenshealth.gov/relationships-and-safety/other-types/harassment
