Analysis
Responses to the questions and mappings varied greatly amongst the interviewees, and lead us to define our general target group in terms of characteristics instead of age range.
Some of the insights we gained from the interviews included the following major points:
Fitting the solution to my life
Some people perceived the healthy lifestyle solutions given to them as inflexible, requiring dramatic lifestyle changes and being only partially relevant to their lives. They saw success as possible only when taking on a "complete" solution, and were reluctant or unable to isolate and adopt small changes from these solutions.
For example, one woman had a collection of books on health and alternative lifestyles, but didn't feel that she could follow the suggestions in these books because they would require her to change her lifestyle too drastically.
"... My life never fits what I read. I'm a very all or nothing person and I sometimes think in order to live the life I really yearn for I'd have to give up everything else and go and live in the middle of nowhere... and grow my own food."
Exercising with others
People cited lack of companionship as a major factor in not starting or continuing with exercise regimes. They derived a lot of motivation from having their decisions impact others and were more likely to maintain exercise when other people were involved.
One woman also felt that the activity of exercise was a very lonely one and didn't enjoy it when she had to go running or to the gym by herself.
Hunger is not the only thing
The idea of over-eating was a strong theme running through several of the interviews. One woman felt obliged to finish what she was served when eating out because of peer pressure and social etiquette.
Another complained of not being able to stop herself from finishing her meal, despite the physical sensation of feeling full. The pleasure she derived from eating overrode her discomfort.
"... I want something that will change the taste of food!"
Contradictions in Health advice
People had access to multiple sources of information, and were sensitive to discrepancies in the health advice they were getting. One woman related how several dietitians had offered contradictory advice as to how she should eat. However, even though she recognized these contradictions, she was still willing to take up the advice.
Control
Control is closely linked to how people manage their health and their perception of well-being. In some cases the perception of control as expressed on the control mapping differed greatly from how interviewees described their relationships with food and activity.
One person expressed an overwhelming sense of loss of control over her habits, cravings, and activity levels, but then mapped those issues under control on the control axis.
Reflection on the Process
Our process thus far focused on establishing obesity as a complex set of relationships between people and their environment, and mapping our expectations of these relationships in terms of time and control.
The interviews revealed interesting discrepancies not only between an interviewee's perceptions and actions, but also between our assumptions and their responses. Comparing both sets of information allowed us to have a better understanding of people's perceived relationship with food, exercise, and their health, and how they map this in their life.
In turn, this understanding helped us concentrate on areas of greatest potential for design solutions. In particular, we were interested in solutions that help people bring areas they perceive as out of their control back under their control.