To test our concept, we did a few rounds of Wizard of Oz sessions. Fist we asked them to go through the process of venting, recounting, and reflecting with themselves, then with a friend, and then with "Ponder." To fake Ponder, we hid a speaker in a tissue box and placed it in a room with a participant. In the meantime, Elleyce, Netty, and I were frantically coming up with responses and questions in a different room to have a mock conversation with the participant. These are the guidelines that came about this activity:
- Building rapport
There needs to be a strong on-boarding process when individuals are first introduced to Ponder to build trust so that the individual will feel comfortable with sharing. - Visual feedback
Like other conversational UIs, Ponder should convey some visual cue that it is listening. - Always have an escape route
Sometimes individuals simply don't want to continue talking to Ponder. It's important that we respect. - Always ask neutral, open-ended questions
Our first goal is simply to ask questions that help navigate what the individual is feeling.