Mediums: UIUX Research & Design
Theme: Design future case: Life decision simulation for people in adulting process
Tools: Figma | Runway
Team members: Olivia Qiu, Lexin Li, Sally Zhou, Kathleen Chen
Group Project | 4 months | 2025
PLAYOUT
Kathleen’s Diary Study
This study indicates that adulting is a dynamic balancing act between external goals and internal wellbeing.
Participatory Workshop
Focus:
Understanding societal standards of adulting versus the internal emotional growth of becoming an adult.
Adulting Definition:
Adulting is the ongoing process of learning how to make independent decisions, take responsibilities, and navigate life's challenges as an adult.
Financial Stability
Problem Statement
Lifestyle Management
Cross Culture Gen Z needs a way to improve self-care and work life balance while maintaining productivity and achievement because we found that they value lifestyle management, emotional wellbeing, and financial stability.
Visual Narrative
Information visualizations of data and observations
Design Future Ideation
PlayOut is a life decision simulator app that use Gen AI and deepfake technology to immersively visualizes potential outcomes. PlayOut helps adulting users make decisions that are more compatible with their personal values.
Social Skills
Career Achievement
Self Improvement
Add Your Terms
Method:
Participants receive a set of cards containing phrases related to seven aspects of adulting. They place these cards onto a Venn diagram divided into three sections: external values, internal values, and intersectionality. Then, Participants use productivity and achievement as the lens to select and rank the five cards they consider most important in their own adulting process.
Emotional Wellbeing
Physical Health
Inspiration
In daily use of productivity and achievement-oriented tools, we realized that most of them are designed for fully mature adults, overlooking those who are still in the process of becoming one. There should be tools specifically created to support individuals who are navigating the journey of adulting with the lens of productivity and achievement.
Prototype
Lydia is a recent graduate from Pratt Institute. She is now thinking about her post graduation plan. She has two options: accept a junior graphic designer position at a design agency in New York, or work as a freelance designer within a digital nomad community in Chiang Mai. Let’s simulate her options in PlayOut!
During the immersive simulation, the app presents different scenarios users may encounter based on their choices. Users can then evaluate each scenario as positive or negative, and their responses are compiled into a summary for reference.
