designing CULTCHECK
This is something I made for class a couple years ago. I want to be clear that there is nothing funny about cults and that they do a lot of damage to people and their families- sometimes catastrophically. In my studies, I had come across cult thinking and the ways that charismatic leaders manipulate people. I wondered: is there a way that technology could help people in cults?
OVERVIEW
I designed an app to help people identify that they are in a cult and offer ways out.
MY ROLE
Designer (student)
Duration
Two weeks
WHAT I DID
Preliminary research, wireframing, prototyping with both Invision and Figma
THE PROBLEM
Ever notice the people around you all dress the same? Have you been condemned to hard labor while being starved and ritualistically beaten? Concerned that your leader is exhibiting an unhealthy interest in your spouse and bank account? Are you beginning to wonder if you’re in a cult?
Sister Aimee
STEP 1: Learn about cults
The first step in the design process is to figure out the key characteristics of cults and how they differ from other groups. What is it about cults that make them unhealthy? Why is it a problem? Why do people need to be rescued from cults? I turned to websites from former cult members as there wasn’t a lot as far as peer reviewed research or questionnaires that had undergone rigorous testing. But it was rather clear that cults do tend to have some key characteristics. This is what I put together from the research I did:
There is a level of isolationism.
Cults will pull you away from your family and loved ones. They will say “we are your new family”. They may also be physically isolated from larger communities, e.g. in a remote location in a jungle or far away into the mountains and without access to a car.
There is often heavy labor, hunger, and sleep deprivation.
People can be more easily manipulated if they are hungry, tired, and over-exerted.
They control member finances.
Often cult members have made huge financial sacrifices to their cult or the cult just flat out controls their finances outright.
Members often look the same.
Some cults control the dress and hairstyle of members.
The cult leader is seen as perfect.
The cult leader is seen as an infallible, godlike being.
Member have little say in who they marry or have intimate relations with.
Arranged marriages, the cult leader taking on member’s wives, etc are also hallmarks of cults.
There is reported abuse, emotional, physical, and/or sexual.
Self-explanatory.
This is the type of person we want to rescue people from.
Step 2: Figure out a solution
There are two difficult hurdles cult members face that have to be overcome.
Cult members are often unable to see they are in a cult.
When they want to get out, they can’t.
So whatever solution we come up with needs to help address those two things. Here is what I drew up.
Yes, it is a bit binary but it gets the user to start to question their situation - the first step in deprogramming.
Flowchart
STEP 3: FIRST PROTOTYPE
From there, I designed the screens in Invision. They are all very basic but follow the template from the flowchart. I drew the creepy, illuminati eye thing as a quick logo. In real life I think I would do something even more basic for user testing.
I also included as possible calls to action, access to Uber, Target website for new clothing, a “call your family” link, and words of encouragement.
You can play with the prototype by clicking on the sample screen below.
Where I missed the mark with this exercise is that I relied to heavily on Adobe Illustrator. I just transposed the screens from AI into Invision - which is terrible! That is just bad form all around! But, it was also at the very beginning of my own UX journey - cut me some slack here!
First attempt with Invision.
SECOND ITERATION
I decided to, after a couple years of experience, to redo the Cultcheck app with better form with Figma. It took be about an hour to complete and it looks so much better!
The only thing I used AI for was the logo. I made sure to make components that can be replicated by a developer and ensured that the placement of buttons, logos, and text were carefully mapped out.
Click the button here to access the Figma (improved) version of the Cultcheck app.
TESTING CONTENT
Using Typeform, I was able to create a prototype to test what the quiz might look like. This was a great choice because it allowed me to use more logic than what a prototype can do. I am still collecting data but here it is for you to try out!
conclusion
Making this app was an interesting process and the more that I worked with the content, the more I think something like this (even in web form) could be beneficial. I think that if I were to go that route, I would like to partner with an expert on cults or, at the very least a psychologist, to help develop a scoring system rather than a binary method I have designed above.