This sprint included a client meeting, a design figjam for TST forums, and a mix of primary and secondary research. Secondary research was planned on learning more about digital immigrants and digital natives, the latter of which are assumed to be the target audience for TST. Primary research was done via surveys and interviews. The sprint demo included an update to user personas, with the persona of “The Artist” listed as the highest priority. There was also a pivot in strategy (also in the sprint demo) that seems to indicate a shift from building mental health and communities to mentorship.

**Client Meeting**

• Nikki mentions Erica, a TST ambassador, as an ideal user because she is healthy, involved in her community, and “cool and fun”
• Nikki mentions that we are visual creatures, controlled by images, and wants a feature of the app to help be more proactive about our response to images
• Nikki likes the focus on community and is drawn toward personas that are driven by purpose and meaning in life.
• Wants TST to be a place where people are encouraged to be more of who they are and build confidence in that identity
• Strategy:
  • Keep focus on younger generations of users and help advocate for them and build them up
  • Precursor to mentoring seems to be brought up with the idea of intergenerational connection and “stewards” who would be responsible helping younger people build certain skills

**Digital Natives and Digital Immigrants Research Plan/Assumptions**

• The assumption behind this research is that most TST users will be digital natives
• Digital natives are those who are born into the digital age.
  • The assumptions made about digital natives include:
    • More likely to adopt and try out new technology vs digital immigrants
    • Tend to be Gen Z and Gen A
    • High capacity for context switching and multitasking
    • Tend to spend less time digesting content, and more time confirming content
      • More time is spent consuming vs. creating content
      • Interact with content with reshares, likes, etc.
    • Social media is an integral part of their lives/world
      • It’s normal to be on social media in social gatherings
      • Try to incorporate what they’re doing into social media content (which can sometimes lead to distorting reality)
      • Will also engage offline to seek experiences outside of social media
• Digital immigrants are those who learned how to use technology as an adult.
  • The assumptions of digital natives include:
    • They are less likely to experiment with new technology compared to digital natives
    • Need more feedback and guidance with technology; steeper learning curve
    • May not recognize common icons, symbols, signifiers, and affordances that are used across designs

*Results of secondary research planned here are unclear, team may have went with research already conducted about Gen Z instead

Primary research for this sprint involved collecting survey responses and conducting interviews over Zoom (30-45 mins in length). Questions for both aimed to learn more about participant social media usage, impressions of social media, and the negative/positive impacts it had on their lives. Interviews were only conducted with 18-24 year olds who responded to the survey, as described in the research plan here. Those who agreed to interview were offered compensation of $20 via Venmo or gift card for their participation.