Privacy-Centered Alternative
To Period Tracking Apps
“How can we help menstruates keep their menstrual cycle information private and secure,”
The following case study systematically outlines our stakeholders, users, design process, tools, research and research findings, sketches, prototype, usability testing and final design.
My Role:
Researcher, Designer, Usability Studies, Prototyping
My Team:
Accessible 4 - Jeeah Eom, Alix Medler, Geo
Place and Timeline:
The University of Washington-MS HCDE, 9 Weeks
Objective:
Complete an entire design process, including user research, ideation, prototyping and evaluation.
What is the “Menoglyphic Calendar”?
The Menoglyphic Calendar, ‘Meno’ for short, is a secure analog period tracker which is designed to store multiple types of period data. Meno was created by a team of graduate students (‘The Accessible Four’) within the University of Washington’s Human Centered Design & Engineering program in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the 10-week course HCDE 518: User-Centered Design (Autumn 2022).
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Why did we create Meno?
As evidenced by countless national media outlets (NPR, The Washington Post, Vox, etc.), there has been increased public attention regarding data privacy and the security of digital reproductive health data in the U.S., following the June 2022 decision on Dobbs v. Jackson’s Women’s Health Organization by the Supreme Court. This observation, combined with our research, would lead our team to the following design question:
How can we help menstruators keep their period cycle information private?
Using data encryption and encoding principles, we sought to provide a viable secure tracking option for menstruators all while creating a safe — and enjoyable — user experience. Through quantitative and qualitative research, the creation of personas, ideation, prototyping, usability testing and iteration, Meno came to life, ushering in a new level of privacy in period tracking. Read on to learn more about the making of Meno.
Problem space
We began our project by exploring the menstruation and data privacy space broadly. During this phase, we asked the following research questions:
- How do menstruates track their period cycles?
- Why do menstruators track their period cycles?
- What are some data privacy issues or concerns menstruators have with existing solutions/products?
- What are some inclusivity issues or concerns menstruators have with existing solutions/products?
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Desk Research
To better understand this problem space, we conducted extensive desk research. Our goal was to utilize existing literature to guide our quantitative and qualitative research. By knowing what had already been studied in this space, we could structure our research appropriately (e.g., leverage pre-established question categories or theoretical constructs). This also allowed us to pinpoint gaps in current research.
Our key findings included:
- Significant established data on the tracking habits of menstruators exists, including when, how and why menstruators track their cycles (Epstein et al., 2017; Broad et al., 2022; Worsfold et al., 2021)
- Data privacy concerns have complex, interdependent sociopolitical, legal, ethical, psychosocial and other impacts of on menstruators, not all of which have been studied in-depth (Deverashetti et al., 2022; Spector-Bagdady and Mello, 2022; Amelang 2022; Gross et al., 2021; Ford et al., 2021; Fowler et al., 2020; Siapka and Biasin, 2021)
- Multiple theoretical constructs of privacy “factors” or “dimensions” in online contexts are present, such as Bansal and Nah’s (2022): Control; Collection; Unauthorized/improper access; Secondary use; Errors; Awareness; and Right to be forgotten
Defining Our Scope
Problem Statement
Many menstruators are concerned about the privacy of their tracked period data, including but not limited to digital contexts. Current research indicates that this concern is an ongoing phenomenon that even predates the Dobbs decision but that menstruators have not been presented with strong alternatives.
Design Question
As stated at the outset of this article, this contextual research would drive our team toward the following design question:How can we help menstruators keep their period cycle information private?
User Research & Results
We chose a mixed methods approach, collecting both quantitative and qualitative data to refine potential user goals and the context of use. Our methods included:
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Our key findings included that:
- For many participants, data privacy wasn’t a concern until Roe was overturned.
- While 48.6% of respondents tracked their period cycles with a period tracking app, the rest used alternative methods (e.g.bodily symptoms, calendars or following birth control.
- Participants were most concerned about the following privacy dimensions: oversight from surveillance (45%), unauthorized/improper access (42%), and secondary use (39%).
- Self-monitoring can be both a pragmatic and therapeutic experience.
- Many participants religiously, habitually record their period information even when they donʼt have a particular concern or purpose relating to their reproductive health.
- Connotations of menstruation differ from generation to generation as well as early life experiences, political affiliations and/or educational fields.
- ʻAccurate prediction,’ along with ʻreassurance on symptomsʼ and ʻhistorical dataʼ are considered important elements in period tracking methods
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Research Synthesis: Personas
As a result of our research, we generated three personas by grouping the characteristics of core potential users based on their varied goals, needs, pain points and interests.
One of the key separating aspects of our personas was their perspectives on privacy and menstrual tracking: were they concerned about invasions of privacy from large corporations and legal entities, from individuals around themselves, or are they merely concerned on behalf of others? For the purposes of this article, we will mainly focus on the primary persona, who is concerned about the surveillance and use of her data by large corporate, legal or governmental entities.
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Our primary persona, Gina, is an amalgamation of insights we found from quantitative and qualitative research.Gina is a designer who is extremely process oriented. She prefers analog objects that she can touch, feel and build emotional connection to. Naturally, she loves collecting museum tickets, writing diary entries as well as using paper calendars over digital ones.Our solution is designed for individuals like Gina who are very much concerned with data privacy and wish to switch to an alternative method that is both therapeutic and enjoyable.
Design Requirements
Our user research and persons allowed us to specify the following design requirements, which were iteratively developed. A successful product would meet the following criteria:
- Enables logging of period start dates and durations.
- Enables reading of past period entries.
- Holds a minimum of 6 months of period entries.
- Avoids or mitigates potential users’ concerns regarding the below privacy dimensions:– Unauthorized/improper access– Oversight from surveillance– Secondary use
user flow
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Ideation & Solution
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With user research conducted, we moved on to the ideation & sketching phase. The key insights we gathered from user research allowed us to individually brainstorm ideas for alternative period trackers with some common understanding. After several rounds of pitching our ideas to one another and weighing the pros and cons, we whittled the list of ideas down to three candidates:
- Smart Display: An internet-free & password-protected touchscreen display.
- Cryptic Calendar: A physical calendar board with a unique encryption mechanism.
- Notion Template: A period-tracking template on the Notion app.
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After further deliberation, our team selected the Cryptic Calendar idea and named our solution “The Menoglyphic Calendar” (Meno). Meno is an analog period tracker with basic encryption features. Meno is meant to be displayed as a piece of home decor, whether placed in a living room, a bedroom or a bathroom.
We believed that although digital solutions could embody more features, analog-centric solutions ultimately elicited stronger feelings of privacy and security. More importantly, the Menoglyphic Calendar addressed the most pressing privacy concern dimensions in our design question:
- Oversight from surveillance: Meno is internet-free.
- Unauthorized/improper access: Meno is meant to be in the security of one’s home.
- Secondary Use: Meno is a completely analog solution, leaves zero digital footprints, and encrypts its data. Hence data will not be intentionally or inadvertently shared or used.
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Prototyping
We quickly started designing our prototype. We finalized the key functionalities of Meno, in light of our available materials and tools for prototyping. With Meno:
- Tracking a “period entry” — cycle start date and cycle length — can be done by snapping encrypted number tiles in the form of indecipherable glyphs onto a calendar board.
- Reading a period entry can be done by placing a personalized “key” over these tiles to convert them into legible numbers.
Given the above, we knew that the Menoglyphic Calendar was a system-heavy solution — it was crucial that the systems designed around the encryption & decryption mechanism were functional and robust. With that in mind, we began by designing three suites of encrypted numbers only decryptable by their corresponding keys.
We then designed the physical components of Meno, including specifying the dimensions of the calendar board, glyph tiles, and keys. We produced vector files in Illustrator to laser cut at the MILL, one of the makerspaces at the University of Washington. Instead of fabricating the quantities of glyph tiles and keys necessary for Meno to be fully functional, we decided to just make enough of them to conduct user tests and demo the core functionalities of the product. After assembly and some quick clean-up, we finished our prototype!
In addition to our physical prototype, we created a user manual that was meant to be read by our users prior to first use. We also utilized this manual during our usability sessions so that the sessions would mimic real user scenarios. Lastly, we produced a demo video which served as a deep dive into the product itself, outlining product components, instructions, and encryption mechanisms.
Usability Testing
We carried out usability testing with three participants to learn about the thoughts and preferences of our users, determine if there were any product issues, and identify untapped product opportunities. Specifically, we were interested in the user experience of 3 key tasks involved in the operation of Meno — logging period data, reading period data, and reading predicted period data (which included understanding the prediction feature concept).
To our delight, all our participants expressed fascination with our product and appreciated the originality of the solution. Of the positive feedback, there were three thoughts that were echoed among the participants:
- Privacy via Encryption: Participants could count on the privacy aspect of Meno due to its encryption feature.
- An Aesthetic & Analog Prototype: Participants found the physical decor aspect of Meno enticing.
- Simple & Clear Labeling: Participants found the labeling on the back of glyph tiles straightforward and intuitive.
Conversely, we also garnered constructive feedback for Meno — three of them were reiterated among the participants:
- Legibility Issues: Participants found selective glyph tiles to be hard to read after decryption.
- Lack of Hanging Mechanism: Participants found Meno to take up too much space if they could not hang it.
- Lack of Organization of Glyph Tiles: Participants suggested that there be guidance or storage solution for the glyph tiles.
Journey Map
Lessons
- Working in a group setting, we had the opportunity to learn from one another’s expertise. Designing with a group with people from various backgrounds and perspectives helped us refine our understanding of user-centered design and research through discussion and explanation. It gave us new perspectives by challenging our assumptions and requesting group feedback. We learned that there is value in having a team with diverse skills.
- The dialectical relationship between research types showed us that carefully choosing appropriate methodology is central to an excellent design discovery experience. We learned that it all comes down to striking a balance between competing needs for control and clarity.
- Recruiting is challenging! Since we didn’t have more than a few days, it was especially difficult to screen potential candidates for interviews as well as setting a time for the remote interview.
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Limitations
We encountered time and resource constraints when working on the project’s deadlines. During a time crunch, skipping the research portion may be tempting, but the immense value of research becomes strikingly clear once one is deep into a project. When we encountered problems or were unsure, the research insights and process kept us grounded and informed.
Analog trackers may be unable to accommodate some accessibility needs without external assistive devices. Meno does provide high color contrast, plain language labeling, the potential for encoded braille tiles, and an accessible instructions manual.
