Enter the password to continue. If you don't have one, get in touch and I'll send it over.
Case study 01 · 0->1 | UX Design
Designed a trauma-informed mobile service that helps domestic abuse victims find support and safely capture evidence — built around safety at every step, from onboarding to a one-tap exit. I led the research and design from 0→1.
*Details have been simplified and decontextualised to preserve confidentiality
For people experiencing domestic abuse, home is not necessarily a safe place — and seeking help can introduce additional risk. Reporting abuse also becomes challenging, as it isn't easy to capture evidence.
The client approached us to develop a mobile service to help victims find relevant support more easily, and to enable them to securely capture and store evidence of abuse.
This was not a conventional usability challenge — poor design decisions could increase risk to the user. So the methodology had to be properly trauma-informed.
Participant recruitment was particularly sensitive. Rather than relying on conventional recruitment channels, we worked through the client's existing relationships with support organisations and victims.
I validated my research approach with an organisation supporting victims of domestic abuse, to make sure the language and methodology followed trauma-informed principles — avoiding unnecessary requests for participants to recount traumatic experiences, reminding them they were in control of what they shared, and monitoring for signs of distress throughout.
"Poor design decisions here could increase risk to the user — the methodology had to be trauma-informed from the ground up."
01When there is no happy path
Users can be stressed, anxious, or under pressure while using the product. Conventional products optimise for a "happy path" toward a goal — but here, an interaction that feels straightforward elsewhere could become genuinely difficult under stress.
Prioritised reducing cognitive load across the interface: fewer options on every screen, large touch targets for calls to action, and interaction flows designed to survive being interrupted mid-way.
02When there is no trust
During onboarding testing, participants hesitated to share personal details — not because they didn't want to fill out the form, but because they feared the data could be misused, or find its way back to the perpetrator.
Redesigned onboarding around transparency: explaining at each step why information was being requested and how it would be used, and tying data collection to a tangible benefit — more relevant, tailored support — so users could make an informed choice before continuing.
03When there is no safety
Using the product itself could create risk. A victim might open the app while in the presence of, or in proximity to, the perpetrator — so the usual assumption that a user can safely navigate an app couldn't be taken for granted.
Introduced a safety check at the entry point: on opening the app, users are first asked whether it's safe to continue. If not, a single button lets them quit immediately — no need to navigate through the product to find a way out. Safety became a foundational interaction principle, not a feature.
The project resulted in an MVP shaped around three principles: safety, trust, and resilience — victim-led at every stage. It gave the client the confidence to take the product forward and test it as their service expands.