Participatory Design

‍Once we launched our first pilot survey, our next steps involved improving the survey and gathering responses. Something we’ve found to be particularly important -- and difficult -- about wellbeing, is that each individual has distinct and varied needs. In order to assess people’s wellbeing against the predefined factors, we needed to know what and how they wanted to be asked about themselves. 

To do this, we employed a novel research approach: a participatory survey design. What this means is that we aim to use the feedback of participants to update and improve the survey. For example, you could be asked ---
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“Was this question clear?”
“Do you think this question is important?”
“What is important for you when you are asked about your wellbeing?”
“What is important for you to feel satisfied?”.

Of course, we won’t be in this situation forever -- so you might be wondering how our assessment tool can help beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. In the future, we aim to produce a highly developed version of our tool that is applicable to many different situations.

For example, an employer could use it to better understand the wellbeing needs of their employees. Or a government of its citizens. Or a school of its students, and so on. On an individual level, we envision an AI-powered system that, based on your information, creates a wellness check-in that adapts to you. To your personality, your needs, and most importantly, your feedback: what matters most to you and your wellbeing.