1- Innovative design—Describe your new design, app, service, product, etc.

For Amelia & I’s design, we chose to design an app that falls under Emotional as it connects individuals on an emotion level and benefits one another by using trust groups to talk in a theraputic manner . Additionally, my design is an app that promotes using peers as an outlet to communicate with on a personal level. Talking about something personal and anxiety ridden, rather than all the amazing things they have done, because truthfully, most people use social media to cover how they really feel. This app acts like a journal allowing you to document how you feel each day with the help of emotional recognition scanning your face and follow up questions to  narrow down how you feel. Sometimes we know how we feel but refuse to really acknowledge that feeling, or we know how we feel but want to document it and find ways to feel better. With this app, it it is created through you, each person customizes it to understand YOU better. You document how you feel each day, and then you can receive feedback via phone, but then, if wanted, you can create trust groups, in which you can invite friends by number to join to group through the app. There is a 5 person limit to each group, the person to creates the group has a privacy code, so that only the people you select conjoin. In this group you talk about how you felt and why. It is an outlet to share the way you feel in small groups on a platform that helps you also acknowledge how you feel. 

2- Upgraded criteria—state your criteria and why you picked it. Why is it important to you & your community?

 My concept of this app is to enable individuals to connect safely but emotionally. I chose Emotional as the criteria because I very often feel overwhelmed and anxious as a young adult in college. I sometimes feel as though I have no one to talk to when I am super stressed out, or I know I have been sad lately but just move past it rather then really acknowledging it and taking action, this is where this app would come in handy. Having it noted somewhere day by day how you feel is a progressive step in becoming more self aware with yourself. Send awareness is a huge component to ones emotional state. You’ll find the happiest people, are the most self aware. This is important to me and my community because as a college student, many people are going through similar emotional waves, this app can help to build trust in those we chose and inhabit self awareness on an individual and group basis. 

3- Supportive context—describe the context or world/community that will support this.

I think that this app and the concept would benefit many communities. I believe if the this app had an easy, well organized layout that many communities would support it. An app that promotes self awareness and trust groups rather creating a safe space for those to openly communicate real issues and emotions would benefit individuals and help them to reach out to others and support them, which is super critical to ones health overall. Studies show that the act of “giving” promotes happy living, so by contributing in a group where you can offer advice or lend an ear and help a friend, you are already one step closer to being a happier person. This being said, most people between the ages of 16 and 30 would most benefit from this app. I also would implant an age restriction on the app starting at 16, because we do not alive the use of social media at earlier ages to help promote healthy technology usage, 16 is an age where most kids know how to think for themselves and can see if this app would benefit them or not. 

4- Weight Costs—Evaluate expected costs—materials. Labor, etc.–this is not a number or monetary figure, but rather a description of the expected costs to the environment, people, etc.

When evaluating cost factors, jobs could be provided in the app where people would be on duty to help offer advice on a generic basis. Almost like a casual therapist offering simple advice to those who ask for suggestions on what to do next to be happier. This person would need a laptop if they don’t have and then stable studied information on how to be a happier person and progressive steps to get there so that they can offer this advice, this person should preferably be a therapist or someone who has studied psychology and communications. 

Potentially Downfalls

-Is limiting trust groups to 5 being non-inclusive?

– How can we make sure peoples privacy is secured?