Habit Harmony

Adaptive Mindfulness: UX Research Behind Building an AI-Powered Mindfulness Course

Duration
6 months

My Role
Lead UX Researcher

Tools
Figma, Google Forms

At a Glance:

The Problem

Technologists often experience high stress, burnout, and difficulty managing relationships with both people and technology. Existing mindfulness courses were either too broad or too meditation-focused, lacking real-world, practical integration for technologists. Additionally, few courses leveraged AI for personalized mindfulness support.

Approach

  • Conduct pre-product research to understand user needs and validate the idea of AI-driven mindfulness support.

  • Perform a literature review to gather evidence around AI's role in delivering mindfulness interventions.

  • Benchmark the landscape through competitive analysis.

  • Recruit and interview real users to build insights into their struggles and aspirations.

  • Synthesize findings into actionable recommendations to design the course.

User Persona

Competitive Research

Research Activities

  • Literature Review:

    • Reviewed 25+ academic papers and studies confirming AI's efficacy in mental health interventions.

    • Identified best practices for AI conversation design in wellness contexts.

  • Competitive Research:

    • Analyzed 7 leading mindfulness and wellness courses.

    • Identified that none specifically addressed technologists' unique challenges with technology relationships.

  • Screener Surveys:

    • Distributed surveys to 140 participants.

    • Assessed participants' current mindfulness practices, technological habits, stress levels, and interest in AI support.

  • Moderated Interviews:

    • Selected 6 participants across diverse professional roles (developers, designers, product managers).

    • Conducted 1-hour moderated interviews focusing on their emotional habits, tech usage patterns, and openness to AI-guided mindfulness.

Insights and Findings

  1. Desire for Practical Application:

    • 87% of users preferred learning mindfulness through real-world examples rather than theory.

  2. AI as a Daily Guide:

    • Users wanted AI prompts that felt "human-like," providing reflections, gentle nudges, and encouragement.

  3. Time Constraints:

    • The majority preferred daily practices under 10 minutes, integrated into busy schedules.

  4. Mindful Relationships:

    • Strong need for mindfulness in interpersonal relationships, with specific stress around virtual communication and collaboration tools.

  5. Skepticism to Trust:

    • Users were skeptical about AI at first but became receptive after interacting with empathetic, context-aware prototypes.

Recommendations Based on Insights

  • Focus course content on real-world scenarios such as mindful emailing, conflict resolution in teams, and screen-time balance.

  • Incorporate adaptive AI bots that deliver personalized mindfulness content based on mood check-ins.

  • Design exercises that take under 10 minutes to maintain high engagement.

  • Create additional modules on mindful relationships, emphasizing communication and emotional awareness.

  • Implement lightweight progress tracking and "small wins" notifications to build positive reinforcement.

Impact

  • Guided the structure and content development of the mindfulness course.

  • Shaped the integration of an AI layer for personalized, empathetic mindfulness guidance.

  • The course is now live and has been made available to technologists worldwide, offering accessible and sustainable mindfulness practices.