Wayfinding Experience of the Massachusetts Court System
For the field research course, I conducted observation, individual interview, and table shadowing to study user behaviors of wayfinding in the courthouses. With the data from nine courthouses, I proposed several potential problems and corresponding recommendations with my team.
Client: Collaborated with the Massachusetts court system in the HFID program
Project Time: 3 months
My Role: UX researcher (Team of 6)
Methods used: Observation, Individual interview, Table shadowing
Challenges
Courthouse is a public system that serves a wide range of people such as those who are unfamiliar with the legal system, those with varying levels of English fluency and literacy, and those with different cognitive and physical abilities. Many visitors come into the courts with some level of stress, and studies have shown that stress inhibits people’s navigational skills.
Wayfinding system is especially critical in guiding users through the courthouse. Hence, I worked with a team, conducting exploratory research to review the current wayfinding system and visitors’ experience in the Massachusetts courthouses.
Process
The study began with a tour of the multiplex courthouse building. We used initial observations along with secondary research to come up with an guideline to design our following research:
Main Findings
Below are the foremost findings regarding wayfinding during the Massachusetts courthouses visit.
Result and Takeaway
According to the findings, we proposed several recommendations to improve wayfinding system of courthouses. The project produced a detailed report and a slide deck presented to the representatives from the Massachusetts Court System on December 22, 2021, with a total of 30 employees participating in it. From the sponsors’s feedback, this report triggered a lot of discussion among court folks.
“There was discussion about the new multiplex courthouses just built two years ago, and a focus on some of the photos that you included. Most people assumed (incorrectly as it turned out), that it was designed well and everything was great. ”
By implementing various field research methods, I learned a lot in communicating and critical thinking. This experience enhanced my analyzing and research capability when studying public service or product.
If I had more time to keep working on the project, I would love to focus on the behaviors of physical disabled visitors in the current wayfinding system. Also, I would like to hold workshops for courthouse employees to learn more about their perspectives and ideas on the wayfinding system.
