Social media can make communication easier—but also easier to avoid
Students explained that digital communication can help them avoid awkward or confrontational conversations.
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Study Abroad · Design Thinking
Face2Face
Helping young adults strengthen face-to-face communication.
Face2Face is a mobile app concept designed to help young adults improve their in-person communication skills by connecting them with people who share similar interests and encouraging real-world social interaction.
- Role
- UX Researcher & Product Designer
- Team
- 3 Members
- Project Type
- Design Thinking – Business Model
- Tools
- Figma, interviews, prototyping, user research
- Location
- Barcelona - Spain
Overview
Technology that supports human connection.
Young adults increasingly rely on social media and digital communication, which can make face-to-face interactions more difficult. Our team explored students’ confidence in face-to-face communication and identified ways to strengthen those skills.
The challenge
Digital convenience can make real conversations harder.
Discomfort with in-person conversationsDifficulty meeting new peopleMisunderstanding toneAvoiding uncomfortable conversationsDifficulty developing professional relationships
Problem statement
How might we help young adults become more confident in face-to-face communication while creating opportunities for meaningful social interaction?
Research · User interviews
12 BAU student interviews.
We interviewed 12 BAU students to understand their communication habits, confidence levels, use of technology, and experiences interacting with new people.
Face-to-face confidenceSocial media useCommunication challengesLoneliness & digital communicationPreferred communication methodsConfidence-building activitiesUniversity support
Key insights
What students told us.
Communication improves through experience
Students often became more confident through school projects, sports, and group activities that required interaction.
Shared interests make conversations easier
Students felt more comfortable communicating with people who had similar interests.
Students want to improve
Regardless of their current confidence level, many participants wanted to strengthen their interpersonal communication skills.
Our solution · Face2Face
Match online. Connect in person.
Face2Face connects users with new people based on their interests, personality traits, and availability. Users create a profile, enter their availability, and are matched with people for activities at public locations.
- Create profile
- Choose interests and traits
- Find compatible people
- Select availability
- Join an activity
- Meet face-to-face
- Provide feedback
- Improve communication skills
Prototype
Eight connected experiences.
Onboarding, interest selection, matching, scheduling, event information, recommendations, communication feedback, and messaging.
Key features
Designed for the full social journey.
Profile & interest matching
Users add their interests, personality traits, age, photo, and biography to create more relevant matches.
Meet people
Users see shared interests and compatibility information before deciding to meet, along with suggested meeting environments based on their preferences.
Join an event
Users select their availability, join activities, and review the location, time, people attending, and activity details.
Event feedback
After an event, users rate their experience and communication confidence to help personalize future activities.
Communication tips
Podcasts, public-speaking tips, communication strategies, and social interaction advice support continued learning.
My role
UX Researcher & Product Designer
I collaborated with my team to research communication challenges among young adults and design a mobile solution that encourages meaningful face-to-face interaction.
Conducted user interviewsDeveloped interview questionsAnalyzed user behaviors and emotionsIdentified research insightsParticipated in ideationDesigned mobile interface conceptsHelped create the Figma prototypeEvaluated user feedbackRefined the final product concept
Design process
Research, make, learn, repeat.
Empathize
Interviewed students about social interaction and communication.
Define
Identified overreliance on technology and discomfort with unfamiliar social situations.
Ideate
Explored ways technology could encourage—not replace—real-world interaction.
Prototype
Designed an app that matches people by interests and organizes in-person activities.
Test
Collected feedback about usability and features.
Iterate
Improved the design based on what participants found useful or confusing.
Reflection
Face2Face taught me how technology can support human connection instead of replacing it.
Through interviews, prototyping, and user feedback, I learned how research insights can guide product decisions and create solutions centered on real needs.
UX ResearchDesign ThinkingFigmaMobile UI DesignUser InterviewsPrototypingProduct DesignQualitative Research
