Conducting research for safer, inclusive tools for a diverse and marginalized community.
Methods:
Surveys
Ethnography
Value-based Design
Impact:
1. Secured funding and stakeholder buy-in for follow-up community design initiatives.
2. Informed strategy for key community-AI safety and accessibility projects aimed to serve 90+ million people globally.
3. Built community trust and engagement for co-design efforts.
My Role:
Co-Lead Researcher
Collaborators:
1 Subject Matter Expert
1 Community Member
Research:
Foundational
Action Research
Problem Context – What we knew was happening
BTS fandom ARMY (global community marginalized by gender and race) faces online hate, abuse and social media shadowbans. ARMY members wanted alternative tools and strategies, pressed by their negative experiences online. We set out to quickly surface shared needs, and uncover design paths for safer, and inclusive digital spaces.
But,
The challenge was designing with a passionate, and sometimes, divided community. We were presented with the question: How do we design with diverse internal norms and practices?
Research Approach: Finding the common ground
To navigate internal friction while designing for a marginalized and passionate fan community, I grounded the research in value-sensitive design.
I focused on what they cared about and how. This let us surface common ground and actionable directions fast.
- Ongoing ethnography (then): Surfaced present and shifting user needs, cultural practices and differences, and daily challenges of ARMYs navigating online hostility → Helped sense and work with emotional stakes.
- Survey (Qual + Quant): To rapidly validate insights, gather diverse perspectives, and involve more community members → Enabled broader participation while capturing nuance.
- Thematic + Descriptive Analysis: Merged qualitative depth with behavioral data for holistic synthesis → Informed strategic design takeaways
What we learned
Even in disagreement, the community aligned around what mattered most, steering then, next set of design efforts.
- Shared values unite people!: Members emphasized respect, love and community care as guiding their interactions.
- Online hostility shapes user practices: Informal and discreet social practices (e.g., using coded language, selective sharing) were seen to safely connect with others.
- Platform fatigue is real: Many were exhausted from adapting to evolving platform policies and algorithms. They desired community-aligned spaces.
Outcomes
1. Helped secure funding to support follow-up community design projects.
2. Set foundation for digital tools: Work informed next projects on community-AI tools (Alt-text for ARMY, cybersafety design for ARMY online).
3. Got people involved: Sparked excitement from more collaborators to join and shape upcoming tech efforts.
Kritika 