political discourse platform

Research & Strategy
Digital Prototyping

1

problem identification

key pain points

America has become frighteningly polarized. We see people on the other side of the political aisle as policies above human beings.

Current social media is built to promote social bubbles and echo chambers.
The idea of a positive interaction with someone on the other political side is incomprehensible.
The act of engaging with said people is daunting.

To reach across the aisle requires emotional energy and patience that is not easy to cultivate in our fast-paced, quick-to-judge world.

TARGET AUDIENCE

Individuals age 16 to 35 who are active – politically and on social media.

2

research

METHODOLOGIES

I read sources from either side of the political aisle to understand the ideologies and language regarding polarization from both perspectives.

I studied literature on how social media algorithms are built to promote social bubbles & echo-chambers, and on the structure of conversation & argument development, based on communication & philosophy studies.

I conducted an in-depth survey to learn about how people view those on the other side of the political aisle & the act of engaging with them, and what their motivations and hindrances are. I collected 60+ responses.

I spoke with people who grew up in social bubbles and in diverse populations to expand upon learnings from the survey.

I traveled to Salt Lake City, Utah, and Phoenix, Arizona to immerse myself in environments, communities, and cultures that are different than what I have grown up around. I befriended people who have grown up exposed to ideas different than my own and whose lifestyles contrast with mine drastically, including Mormons and students who grew up in the Deep South. My goal was to interact socially with people on the other side of the political aisle. After developing social relationships, I was able to push into deeper conversations about beliefs and values.

I set out to develop a platform that encourages:

EXPOSURE,

INTERACTION,

& PRODUCTIVE DISCOURSE

BETWEEN PEOPLE WITH OPPOSING VIEWPOINTS.

It started out as a website and later evolved to a social media app.

3

framework development

Informed by research on argument structure and the status quo of conversations between people with opposing viewpoints, I developed a framework for guiding such conversations, focusing on humanization, valid argument framing, and productivity.

Our team tested an early iteration of this framework with real people on either side of the aisle.

4

sitemap &
Initial Mockups

5

functional prototype

I led a team to develop a functional proof-of-concept, using PHP and SQL. We tested this prototype with potential users to collect feedback.

6

pivot

Based on feedback & additional research, I pivoted the structure of the solution and rebuilt it as a social media app.

Before tackling the lack of productive conversations between people of opposing viewpoints, I must tackle the lack of energy people have towards engaging with the other side in the first place.

I broke down “engagement” into:

Exposure,
Social Interaction,
& Conversation.

I conducted further research to understand what it takes for a person to engage in exposure and social interaction with the other side.

I am currently working on developing the UI for my second prototype.