Autistic people make up a sizable percentage of the US population, but are still not properly represented, normalized, or accounted for in public spaces. Because of this, many common social environments are not suited for individuals with Autism, causing stress and reactions that further stigmatize and isolate them.
If more public institutes can be outfitted to support these adults, it can help them achieve social empowerment, success, and de-stigmatization.
Our team focused on advocating for these changes specifically in museums, as one of the most prominent public centers in any city. From art to history, science, and more, museums are a common social hub for activity and education, providing the perfect opportunity for adults with Autism to develop their interests and engage in community settings.
Simple, step-by-step narrative of an example museum journey illustrated online so visitors can plan their visits similarly.
Dedicated museum events where sensory conditions are heavily managed and attendance is limited for fewer crowds.
Separate, secluded areas of the museum where visitors can step away and decompress or relax before resuming their visit.
A scattered handful of museums offer various sensory solutions for patrons with autism, but none are consistently available or even widely known.
After that, we drafted and sent out a survey to 65+ participants. We asked our users about their experiences at museums in order to pinpoint what specific struggles that adults with Autism face in these environments. We pivoted from the trends noted in our survey results with a series of semi-structured interviews that informed our understanding of the wants and values autistic adults have in public spaces.
Survey
- 50+ respondents
- What kind of museums are people visiting?
- Do people know what resources are available?
- What are their impressions of these resources?
- What stresses them out at museums?
Semi-structured Interviews
- Positive/negative museum anecdotes
- More in-depth insights onto survey trends
We organized all of our user feedback onto an affinity map, grouping common points into larger categories until we were able to see overarching themes in our user needs that we translated into key user insights for our design.
Users need to manage anxiety in public
Should provide info on managing anxiety in crowds
Users need to manage anxiety in public
Should provide info on managing anxiety in crowds
Users need to manage anxiety in public
Should provide info on managing anxiety in crowds
Users need to manage anxiety in public
Should provide info on managing anxiety in crowds
Users need to manage anxiety in public
Should provide info on managing anxiety in crowds
generating 70 rapid ideas and eventually narrowing down to two concepts that achieved all 5 of our criteria. We reviewed both concepts with several of our target users and received significant preference for one concept that we then advanced into a more high-fidelity prototype.
She often visits science museums as part of her academic research, and she spends hours before each visit researching the museum to have some idea of what to expect, but on more than one occasion, she’s been quickly worn out and had to leave unexpectedly. She would love to be able to experience these museums without worry or stress.
Users occasionally did not recognize the resources presented to them
“Social Story? Don’t know what that means”
Users had minor misunderstandings in clickable elements
“I thought the tags were clickable”
Users would benefit from a more personalized app experience
“If I already know what I want, I’d rather just see that than have to go into the full page”
In addition to this, we also reviewed our design with usability professionals, rating our tasks through a series of heuristic evaluations.
Overall, our users all successfully navigated and completed every given task. They responded positively to each feature and repeatedly expressed desire to use this app in their real lives.
Our next steps would be to iterate on our prototype to implement changes based on feedback and continue evaluating with users further. That being said, our research up until now has been undoubtedly informative and supports our prototype as an effective concept for supporting adults with autism as they navigate museum experiences in a positive, stress-free manner.
