Let's Work
Together
© 2025 by Ori Sharf
Digtox
Transforming Digital Habits with Insights into Human Behavior
Digtox is a behavior-driven app designed to help users reduce excessive smartphone use and cultivate healthier digital habits. Developed during a collaborative academic seminar, the project integrates behavioral theories and user insights to create an impactful, user-friendly solution.
Digtox is a behavior-driven app designed to help users reduce excessive smartphone use and cultivate healthier digital habits. Developed during a collaborative academic seminar, the project integrates behavioral theories and user insights to create an impactful, user-friendly solution.
Team structure
The project was a collaborative effort with two team members, where we combined our strengths in psychology, UX research, and design. Each team member contributed to the research, analysis, and design stages, ensuring that every decision was the result of shared insights and teamwork.
The project was a collaborative effort with two team members, where we combined our strengths in psychology, UX research, and design. Each team member contributed to the research, analysis, and design stages, ensuring that every decision was the result of shared insights and teamwork.
My Role
My Role
Research, UX/UI Design, Interaction Design, Prototyping, Usability Testing
Research, UX/UI Design, Interaction Design, Prototyping, Usability Testing
Overview - the problem
What’s Preventing Healthier Digital Habits?
What’s Preventing Healthier Digital Habits?
Smartphones promised freedom but delivered addiction.
While users crave digital balance, today's solutions only track the problem,
adding another burden.
Smartphones promised freedom but delivered addiction.
While users crave digital balance, today's solutions only track the problem, adding another burden.
Why Is It So Hard to Break Free?
Why Is It So Hard to Break Free?
Smartphone overuse isn’t just a habit—it’s driven by design.
Addictive features and psychological triggers like FOMO, anxiety,
and loneliness keep users engaged, making it hard to disconnect.
Even when users recognize the harm, taking action remains the challenge.
Smartphone overuse isn’t just a habit—it’s driven by design. Addictive features and psychological triggers like FOMO, anxiety, and loneliness keep users engaged, making it hard to disconnect. Even when users recognize the harm, taking action remains the challenge.
Hypothesis
Hypothesis
If users are provided with tools that raise awareness of their digital habits while addressing the emotional and psychological factors driving excessive use, they will be more likely to adopt healthier, sustainable digital routines.
If users are provided with tools that raise awareness of their digital habits while addressing the emotional and psychological factors driving excessive use, they will be more likely to adopt healthier, sustainable digital routines.
Design process
We followed a user-centered process across five key phases—Discovery, Definition, Ideation, Prototyping, and Testing. Each phase deepened our understanding of users' relationship with technology, ultimately shaping a solution that bridges the gap between awareness and action.
Design process
We followed a user-centered process across five key phases—Discovery, Definition, Ideation, Prototyping, and Testing. Each phase deepened our understanding of users' relationship with technology, ultimately shaping a solution that bridges the gap between awareness and action.
Discovery
What’s Missing in Today’s Solutions?
Our research covered a wide range of solutions, from built-in tools to mindfulness
apps and hardware, to understand the market and user needs.
Key Strengths
Gaps & Opportunities
Comprehensive Integration
Apple’s Screen Time and Google Digital Wellbeing provide seamless, built-in solutions for tracking and limiting usage.
Addressing Root Causes
Few solutions focus on the emotional or psychological triggers behind excessive use, such as FOMO or anxiety.
Gamified Experiences
Apps like Forest engage users through incentives, such as growing virtual trees and supporting real-world causes
Sustainable Engagement
Many tools fail to maintain user interest over time, limiting their long-term impact.
Detailed Usage Analysis
Tools like RescueTime provide in-depth reports to help users understand their digital habits.
Customization
Existing tools lack personalized features that adapt to individual user needs and contexts.
Insights for Design
Quantitative Study
Understanding User Habits and Barriers - The Hidden Struggles of Smartphone Addiction
We conducted a survey to explore smartphone usage patterns, emotional triggers, and barriers to reducing use. These insights served as a data-driven foundation for our research.
133
participants
18-65
Age Range
Key Findings
70%+ of respondents use their phones for more than 3 hours daily,
with messaging apps and social media dominating
How much time per day, on average, do you think you spent using your smartphone in the past month?
less than a hour
1-2 hours
3-4 hours
5-6 hours
more than 6 hours
42.9% reported their phone use interfered with important tasks
Does smartphone use interfere with completing important tasks or commitments (such as studying, work, or household chores)?
Often
Sometimes
Rarely
Not at all
Very often
Key Barriers - Difficulty with self-regulation, lack of awareness, and social pressure
If you have tried to reduce your smartphone or social media usage in the past, what were the main challenges you encountered?
Difficulty disconnecting
Fear of missing important information
Boredom
Social pressure
Automatic habit
I haven’t tried to reduce my usage
Insights for Design
Qualitative Study
Users Want Control, But Emotional Triggers
Hold Them Back
I conducted 7 interviews with diverse participants to explore smartphone usage patterns,
emotional drivers, and challenges in achieving balance.
The findings revealed connections between technology use, lifestyle, and well-being.
Key Findings
Participants used their smartphones to stay updated, escape stress, and maintain social and professional connections.
For example, a content creator shared, "In this world, if you don’t post regularly, you’re quickly forgotten."
While some participants experienced positive emotions, such as encouragement from social connections, most of the participants reported stress, anxiety, and negative self-comparison.
"Sometimes I get off Instagram and feel bad about myself, like everyone is achieving more than me."
Although participants tried screen time tools, they often bypassed restrictions to stay relevant or connected.
"I always find myself bypassing the restrictions… it’s like I have to log in."
Insights for Design
Users in Context
Users Struggle to Balance Smartphone
Use Across All Life Areas
User Roles and Environments
Roles & Emotional Motivations
Smartphone users fulfill diverse roles—content consumers, creators,
professionals, and students—each driven by unique emotional needs.
Many seek social connection, belonging, and validation, while others
use devices to escape stress or boredom. Emotional triggers like
FOMO and anxiety often reinforce habitual behaviors, especially in younger
audiences and professionals under pressure to stay updated.
Environmental Triggers
Usage patterns vary by setting -
Relaxation & Entertainment
Users often engage in leisure activities like streaming, gaming, or casual browsing during evenings.
Home
Productivity but Distracted
Users rely on productivity apps and communication tools but often face interruptions from social media or notifications.
Workplace
Quick Updates & Escape
Users check their phones for brief entertainment, navigation, or communication while commuting or waiting.
On the Go
Social Norms & Connectivity
Smartphone use is influenced by a need to stay socially connected or fill downtime in shared spaces.
Public Spaces
Barriers to Change
Despite awareness of excessive use, users face challenges in reducing screen time, including -
Self-regulation - Difficulty setting limits without external tools or support.
Social pressure - Fear of missing out on professional or personal updates.
Automatic habits - Unconscious behaviors reinforced by app design and notifications.
Key Takeaways from user research
What Users Need for Balanced Digital Habits?
Smartphones Fulfill Emotional Needs but Encourage Overuse
Managing Screen Time is Challenging Due to Habits and Pressures
Excessive Use Negatively Affects Physical and Mental Well-being
Discovery
Discovery
Define
Insights into Users' Motivations and Challenges
Empathy Map - Understanding Thoughts, Feelings, and Behaviors"
User Journey Map - Mapping the Path to Change, From Awareness to Action
Ideat
Idea Generation Process
Hypothesis Reminder
Providing tools that raise awareness and address emotional triggers can promote sustainable digital habits
Proposed Solutions
Virtual Reality (VR) Game
Encourages screen breaks through an engaging game that rewards users with a growing virtual forest.
Smartwatch for Screen Time
Suggests short breaks and offers rewards for completing guided exercises.
Interactive Digital Book
Combines storytelling with actionable challenges to gradually improve digital habits.
The Chosen Concept
Introducing the Micro-Task System -
Small Actions, Big Changes through User-Centered Design
Theoretical Foundations -
Fogg Behavior Model (B=MAP)
Motivation
Ability
Triggers
Triggers
Low
High
Hard to do
Easy to do
Action
Hooked Model
How It Aligns with Research?
Users prefer adaptive, non-restrictive solutions that integrate naturally into routines.
Gradual, low-stress implementation aligns with user preferences.
Emotional triggers and barriers (like FOMO) are addressed through rewards and behavioral insights.
Define
Information Architecture
Task Flows
User Scenario -
Smartphone Usage Management Through an App
Expand Scenario
Ideat
Prototype
Initial Onboarding Experience
Design Decision
The first stage of onboarding is designed to establish a smooth
and engaging entry point for users. It collects essential information
while maintaining a seamless flow, ensuring that users do not feel overwhelmed.
Reducing Cognitive Load
The process is broken into digestible steps, avoiding an overwhelming
form-filling experience.
Customization & Engagement
Users can select their digital habits and focus areas, giving
them immediate control over their experience.
Familiar Sign-up Methods
Multiple login options (email, phone, social media) cater
to user preferences, reducing friction and improving accessibility.
Psychological Comfort
A soft, calming visual approach enhances a sense of ease,
aligning with research that users prefer non-intrusive, non-punitive onboarding processes.
Behavioral Customization
Design Decision
This stage focuses on deeper customization, allowing users
to define their preferences for tracking, motivation, and reminders.
By integrating behavioral insights, the design fosters engagement
without introducing a sense of restriction.
Choice Architecture & Motivation
Users select their preferred tracking and motivation mechanisms
(e.g., visual charts, achievement badges) based on behavioral design principles.
Gamification & Positive Reinforcement
By offering progress streaks, badges, and community challenges,
the system enhances engagement through intrinsic motivatio
Personalized Nudges
The user can choose notification styles (quick alerts vs. gentle
nudges), avoiding the feeling of being pressured or micromanaged.
Final Confirmation & Positive Framing
Final Confirmation & Positive Framing
The last step reassures users
of their progress, using encouraging language ("You're ready for change!")
to reinforce commitment.
Home Screen
Clarity and Visibility
The home screen provides users with a concise summary of their digital wellness journey.
A data-driven approach (graphs, quick insights) helps users visualize their improvements, encouraging continued engagement.
Real-time progress tracking through analytics (e.g., time saved, social media reduction) reinforces self-awareness, a key research finding.
Research-Based Design Choice
Research Insight
Users need an intuitive, simple solution that doesn’t feel restrictive or punishing.
Design Response
The home screen presents progress in a positive, motivational way instead of using restrictive language or punitive elements. Users see time gained rather than time lost.
Prototype
AI Assistant Screen
Efficiency and Guidance
The AI-powered assistant provides personalized insights, adaptive recommendations, and goal-setting options.
Users can directly interact with the assistant, making adjustments without digging through multiple settings.
Research-Based Design Choice
Research Insight
Users struggle with self-monitoring and require low-effort solutions for habit change.
Design Response
The AI assistant automates tracking and goal adjustments, reducing friction and enhancing engagement. This follows research findings that gamification and nudges work best when low effort is required from the user.
Tasks Screens
Simplicity & Engagement
The task-based approach simplifies habit formation into small, actionable steps.
Users can customize routines by selecting tasks from different wellness categories.
A progress tracker motivates users to stay engaged.
Research-Based Design Choice
Research Insight
Users need short and clear tasks that feel manageable and rewarding.
Design Response
The morning, afternoon, and evening rituals reflect habit-stacking principles (from behavior change models like Fogg & HOOKED) to gradually shift behavior without resistance.
Achievements & Rewards Screen
Gamification & Positive Reinforcement
Users unlock lifetime achievements, streaks, and milestones to reinforce behavior change.
Level-based progression motivates users by showing them their next goal instead of focusing on past failures.
Social elements like "Invite Friends" enhance community-driven accountability.
Research-Based Design Choice
Research Insight
Gamification increases motivation and helps users commit to long-term behavioral changes.
Design Response
The achievements and rewards system uses progress tracking, competition, and social validation to boost engagement.
Test
Evaluating the Prototype’s Usability
We conducted usability testing to validate the effectiveness of our design and identify areas for improvement. Participants tested task management and notification settings, providing key insights into user experience.
Challenges Identified & Suggested Improvements
The need for clearer visual feedback on performed actions, such as confirmation that the task was successfully added.
Strengthening the visual hierarchy in the notifications screen to make access more intuitive.
One participant had difficulty understanding how to access the notification screen in the profile and noted that the icon or text leading to this screen was not prominent enough.
Two participants suggested adding a short explanation or a tooltip (such as text under the buttons) to clarify the purpose of each toggle.
Next Steps
Strengthen visual feedback (e.g., Toast Messages) for completed actions to increase user confidence.
Improve accessibility of key screens by enhancing button prominence, icons, and explanatory labels.
Implement interactive tooltips where users encountered difficulties, ensuring immediate guidance.
Further refine task categorization to improve usability and clarity.
Introduce adaptive notifications with encouraging messages to enhance engagement.
Personal Insights
Growing Within a Team
Working collaboratively challenged me to balance different perspectives, share decision-making, and defend design choices with research. Embracing feedback strengthened my ability to refine ideas and create more effective solutions.
Learning to Iterate & Let Go
I learned to detach from initial ideas and prioritize what truly benefits users. Small refinements, like clearer feedback or better task categorization, showed me that design is an evolving process.
What’s Missing in Today’s Solutions?
Key Strengths
Gaps & Opportunities
Comprehensive Integration
Apple’s Screen Time and Google Digital Wellbeing provide seamless, built-in solutions for tracking and limiting usage.
Addressing Root Causes
Few solutions focus on the emotional or psychological triggers behind excessive use, such as FOMO or anxiety.
Gamified Experiences
Apps like Forest engage users through incentives, such as growing virtual trees and supporting real-world causes
Sustainable Engagement
Many tools fail to maintain user interest over time, limiting their long-term impact.
Detailed Usage Analysis
Tools like RescueTime provide in-depth reports to help users understand their digital habits.
Customization
Existing tools lack personalized features that adapt to individual user needs and contexts.
Key Strengths
Gamified Experiences
Apps like Forest engage users through incentives, such as growing virtual trees and supporting real-world causes
Detailed Usage Analysis
Tools like RescueTime provide in-depth reports to help users understand their digital habits.
Comprehensive Integration
Apple’s Screen Time and Google Digital Wellbeing provide seamless, built-in solutions for tracking and limiting usage.
Gaps & Opportunities
Addressing Root Causes
Few solutions focus on the emotional or psychological triggers behind excessive use, such as FOMO or anxiety.
Sustainable Engagement
Many tools fail to maintain user interest over time, limiting their long-term impact.
Customization
Existing tools lack personalized features that adapt to individual user needs and contexts.
Insights for Design
Insights for Design
Test
Tasks Screens
Simplicity & Engagement
The task-based approach simplifies habit formation into small, actionable steps.
A progress tracker motivates users to stay engaged.
Users can customize routines by selecting tasks from different wellness categories.
Research-Based Design Choice
Research Insight
Users need short and clear tasks that feel manageable and rewarding.
Design Response
The morning, afternoon, and evening rituals reflect habit-stacking principles (from behavior change models like Fogg & HOOKED) to gradually shift behavior without resistance.
Next Steps
Strengthen visual feedback (e.g., Toast Messages) for completed actions to increase user confidence.
Improve accessibility of key screens by enhancing button prominence, icons, and explanatory labels.
Implement interactive tooltips where users encountered difficulties, ensuring immediate guidance.
Further refine task categorization to improve usability and clarity.
Introduce adaptive notifications with encouraging messages to enhance engagement.
Personal Insights
Growing Within a Team
I learned to detach from initial ideas and prioritize what truly benefits users. Small refinements, like clearer feedback or better task categorization, showed me that design is an evolving process.
Learning to Iterate & Let Go
Combines storytelling with actionable challenges to gradually improve digital habits.
Quantitative Study
Understanding User Habits and Barriers - The Hidden Struggles of Smartphone Addiction
We conducted a survey to explore smartphone usage patterns, emotional triggers, and barriers to reducing use. These insights served as a data-driven foundation for our research.
133
participants
18-65
Age Range
Key Findings
70%+ of respondents use their phones for more than 3 hours daily, with messaging apps and social media dominating
less than a hour
1-2 hours
3-4 hours
5-6 hours
more than 6 hours
How much time per day, on average, do you think you spent using your smartphone in the past month?
42.9% reported their phone use interfered with important tasks
Often
Sometimes
Rarely
Not at all
Very often
Does smartphone use interfere with completing important tasks or commitments (such as studying, work, or household chores)?
Insights for Design
Insights for Design
We conducted usability testing to validate the effectiveness of our design and identify areas for improvement. Participants tested task management and notification settings, providing key insights into user experience.
Evaluating the Prototype’s Usability
Challenges Identified & Suggested Improvements
The need for clearer visual feedback on performed actions, such as confirmation that the task was successfully added.
Strengthening the visual hierarchy in the notifications screen to make access more intuitive.
One participant had difficulty understanding how to access the notification screen in the profile and noted that the icon or text leading to this screen was not prominent enough.
Two participants suggested adding a short explanation or a tooltip (such as text under the buttons) to clarify the purpose of each toggle.
Achievements & Rewards Screen
Gamification & Positive Reinforcement
Level-based progression motivates users by showing them their next goal instead of focusing on past failures.
Users unlock lifetime achievements, streaks, and milestones to reinforce behavior change.
Research-Based Design Choice
Research Insight
Gamification increases motivation and helps users commit to long-term behavioral changes.
Design Response
The achievements and rewards system uses progress tracking, competition, and social validation to boost engagement.
AI Assistant Screen
Efficiency and Guidance
Users can directly interact with the assistant, making adjustments without digging through multiple settings.
The AI-powered assistant provides personalized insights, adaptive recommendations, and goal-setting options.
Research-Based Design Choice
Research Insight
Users struggle with self-monitoring and require low-effort solutions for habit change.
Design Response
The AI assistant automates tracking and goal adjustments, reducing friction and enhancing engagement. This follows research findings that gamification and nudges work best when low effort is required from the user.
Home Screen
Clarity and Visibility
Real-time progress tracking through analytics (e.g., time saved, social media reduction) reinforces self-awareness, a key research finding.
The home screen provides users with a concise summary of their digital wellness journey.
A data-driven approach (graphs, quick insights) helps users visualize their improvements, encouraging continued engagement.
Research-Based Design Choice
Research Insight
Users need an intuitive, simple solution that doesn’t feel restrictive or punishing.
Design Response
The home screen presents progress in a positive, motivational way instead of using restrictive language or punitive elements. Users see time gained rather than time lost.
Qualitative Study
Users Want Control, But Emotional Triggers Hold Them Back
I conducted 7 interviews with diverse participants to explore smartphone usage patterns, emotional drivers, and challenges in achieving balance. The findings revealed connections between technology use, lifestyle, and well-being.
Key Findings
Participants used their smartphones to stay updated, escape stress, and maintain social and professional connections.
For example, a content creator shared, "In this world, if you don’t post regularly, you’re quickly forgotten."
While some participants experienced positive emotions, such as encouragement from social connections, most of the participants reported stress, anxiety, and negative self-comparison.
"Sometimes I get off Instagram and feel bad about myself, like everyone is achieving more than me."
Although participants tried screen time tools, they often bypassed restrictions to stay relevant or connected.
"I always find myself bypassing the restrictions… it’s like I have to log in."
Insights for Design
Insights for Design
Behavioral Customization
Design Decision
This stage focuses on deeper customization, allowing users to define their preferences for tracking, motivation, and reminders. By integrating behavioral insights, the design fosters engagement without introducing a sense of restriction.
Users select their preferred tracking and motivation mechanisms (e.g., visual charts, achievement badges) based on behavioral design principles.
Choice Architecture & Motivation
By offering progress streaks, badges, and community challenges, the system enhances engagement through intrinsic motivation.
Gamification & Positive Reinforcement
The user can choose notification styles (quick alerts vs. gentle nudges), avoiding the feeling of being pressured or micromanaged.
Personalized Nudges
Final Confirmation & Positive Framing
The last step reassures users of their progress, using encouraging language ("You're ready for change!") to reinforce commitment.
Initial Onboarding Experience
Design Decision
The first stage of onboarding is designed to establish a smooth and engaging entry point for users. It collects essential information while maintaining a seamless flow, ensuring that users do not feel overwhelmed.
The process is broken into digestible steps, avoiding an overwhelming form-filling experience.
Reducing Cognitive Load
Users can select their digital habits and focus areas, giving them immediate control over their experience.
Customization & Engagement
Multiple login options (email, phone, social media) cater to user preferences, reducing friction and improving accessibility.
Familiar Sign-up Methods
Psychological Comfort
A soft, calming visual approach enhances a sense of ease, aligning with research that users prefer non-intrusive, non-punitive onboarding processes.
The Chosen Concept
Introducing the Micro-Task System -
Small Actions, Big Changes through User-Centered Design
Theoretical Foundations
Fogg Behavior Model (B=MAP)
Motivation
Ability
Triggers
Triggers
Low
High
Hard to do
Easy to do
Action
Hooked Model
How It Aligns with Research?
Users prefer adaptive, non-restrictive solutions that integrate naturally into routines.
Gradual, low-stress implementation aligns with user preferences.
Emotional triggers and barriers (like FOMO) are addressed through rewards and behavioral insights.
Task Flows
User Scenario -
Smartphone Usage Management Through an App
Expand Scenario
Expand Scenario
Hypothesis Reminder
Providing tools that raise awareness and address emotional triggers can promote sustainable digital habits
Idea Generation Process
Proposed Solutions
Virtual Reality (VR) Game
Encourages screen breaks through an engaging game that rewards users with a growing virtual forest.
Suggests short breaks and offers rewards for completing guided exercises.
Smartwatch for Screen Time
Interactive Digital Book
Combines storytelling with actionable challenges to gradually improve digital habits.
Empathy Map - Understanding Thoughts, Feelings, and Behaviors"
User Journey Map - Mapping the Path to Change, From Awareness to Action
Users in Context
Users Struggle to Balance Smartphone Use Across All Life Areas
User Roles and Environments
Roles & Emotional Motivations
Smartphone users fulfill diverse roles—content consumers, creators, professionals, and students—each driven by unique emotional needs. Many seek social connection, belonging, and validation, while others use devices to escape stress or boredom. Emotional triggers like FOMO and anxiety often reinforce habitual behaviors, especially in younger audiences and professionals under pressure to stay updated.
Environmental Triggers
Usage patterns vary by setting -
Relaxation & Entertainment
Users often engage in leisure activities like streaming, gaming, or casual browsing during evenings.
Home
Productivity but Distracted
Users rely on productivity apps and communication tools but often face interruptions from social media or notifications.
Workplace
Quick Updates & Escape
Users check their phones for brief entertainment, navigation, or communication while commuting or waiting.
On the Go
Social Norms & Connectivity
Smartphone use is influenced by a need to stay socially connected or fill downtime in shared spaces.
Public Spaces
Relaxation & Entertainment
Users often engage in leisure activities like streaming, gaming, or casual browsing during evenings.
Home
Productivity but Distracted
Users rely on productivity apps and communication tools but often face interruptions from social media or notifications.
Workplace
Quick Updates & Escape
Users check their phones for brief entertainment, navigation, or communication while commuting or waiting.
On the Go
Social Norms & Connectivity
Smartphone use is influenced by a need to stay socially connected or fill downtime in shared spaces.
Public Spaces
Barriers to Change
Despite awareness of excessive use, users face challenges in reducing screen time, including -
Self-regulation - Difficulty setting limits without external tools or support.
Social pressure - Fear of missing out on professional or personal updates.
Automatic habits - Unconscious behaviors reinforced by app design and notifications.
Key Takeaways from user research
What Users Need for Balanced Digital Habits?
Smartphones Fulfill Emotional Needs but Encourage Overuse
Managing Screen Time is Challenging Due to Habits and Pressures
Excessive Use Negatively Affects Physical and Mental Well-being
Let's Work
Together
© 2025 by Ori Sharf