Improving Trust & Safety of users on TikTok using Behaviour Design — a UX case study
Right now, before you start to read on, answer me this: What are your impressions of TikTok? Are you for or against it?
Fact is TikTok is a beautiful piece of technology and I am somewhat on the fence myself. I recognize both the light and darkness in the app. Today we are going to explore the dark side.
The Pandemic
In the year of 2021, the world is currently battling bravely against the COVID-19 Pandemic but there is a bigger worry: The Cyber Pandemic.
A study conducted by DQInstitute (data collected from 145,426 children and adolescents in 30 different countries from 2017–2019) shows that cyber risks are serious and needs to be addressed immediately.
Tech companies are facing a threat from U.S. lawmakers who are re-examining the liability of platforms for their content.
My Call-To-Action
As a UX designer, I was engulfed by the need to take action. After reading this very article by BBC: A BBC Investigation found people sending sexual messages to teenagers and children, I set my mind to come up with ways to improve the trust and safety of users on TikTok.
Phase 1: Research
Users Interviews
My first approach was to understand the problem by speaking to those around me, TikTok users about their first-hand experiences on the app.
Demographics
- 10 participants
- Content creators/content viewers
- 14–25 years old
User Quotes
“I feel angry when I see mean comments as I think that it will hurt the reader’s feelings. Despite feeling helpless, I choose not to report because I believe that Tik Tok does not read our reports hence there is no use doing so.”
Participant K, 14 years old
“I feel sad that young kids who are vulnerable and not secure about their identity, when they put up their videos, people often threaten their confidence with toxic behaviour and I have personally witnessed the aftermath in primary & secondary school students crying as a result.”
Participant J, content creator, 25 years old
Ominous dark clouds hovered over the topic of cyberbullying and sexual harassment as I found it difficult to chat with the participants about the topic.
Fortunately for me, some of the participants were supportive of my project. They spoke up about their experiences as I told them that their honesty would provide valuable insight for a good cause.
Opportunity Window
In the present, TikTok has excelled in monitoring and combating content violation, removing 96% of videos before they are reported.
However, opportunities to improve on the threat and safety exist lie within the realm of content engagement.
Responses and reactions like comments are not proactively managed. I believe that more can be done to improve the user conduct that will eventually improve the overall user experience of TikTok.
Current Solution
TikTok had actually rolled out a comment filter to as a countermeasure to this problem in 2019, where users can be in charge of the comments coming through their channel with ‘comment filters’.
However this ‘ filter’ only addresses the symptoms of the problem at hand, instead of addressing the root cause: Perpetrators are motivated and capable to commit verbal abuse.
Epiphany
While brainstorming, I realized that my research would not be complete if I only studied the negative experiences that people observed or encountered (victims).
I needed to study the mindset and behaviour of users who committed these acts (perpetrators).
Unfortunately, despite trying my best to reach out and recruit users who fall into the category of perpetrators, I was unable to find anyone who was willing to admit/speak of their dark habits. I tried anonymous Google surveys and even Omegle, but to no avail.
Understanding the Behaviour of Cyber Bullies & Sexual Predators
Exclusive Interview
I got lucky when I met Wan Shu Hui on LinkedIn, a Technical Talent Acquisition Consultant with Psychology degree who shared with her personal evaluation of the dysfunctional patterns behind cyber bullies & predators:
- Cyberbullying is a way to project one’s internal insecurities outwards onto other targets, under the protection of the anonymity. Usually, bullies have inferiority issues and have poor communication skills, and hence unfurl that frustration unto others. By beating up others as a mean anonymous user, it grants the cyber bully confidence and this reinforcement feeds into a self-perpetuating habit of needing to bully. In a way, this is also an addiction should this habit become a lifestyle
- Sexual predation stems from many roots, but in general sexual predators personally combat certain wounds inflicted on them when young, and this is more of a psychodynamic/Freudian take on their behavior
- Again, under the guise of a username, a sexual predator also attempts to re-enact the same behaviour and wounds upon another, usually targeted at minors or the vulnerable that are less likely to fight back, while turning to methods like extortion or blackmail
- Ultimately these preps exploit the ease of access on social media platforms and the protection of identity to carry out their acts
Online Research
80% of teens say that others cyber-bully because they think it is “funny.”
According to the National Crime Prevention Council, one of the more disturbing cyberbullying facts has to do with the perception that online harassment is nothing more than a joke. This idea is so prevalent that four out of five teens believe that cyberbullies are doing what they do because it is funny. Surveyed teens seem not to be aware of the negative effects this behaviour can have on victims. Many teens believe that others engage in cyberbullying because they think everyone else does it, or because they are encouraged by friends to participate.
Cracking the Bully’s Code
As Ms Wan mentioned, cyberbullying is a habit formed and I instantly got reminded of Nir Eyal’s Hook Canvas.
Nir Eyal, an investor and entrepreneur with two sold companies under his belt, published “Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products”. He pointed out that using psychology, companies can build products that are so addictive that users eventually get hooked to them. I am sure TikTok, along with other big tech products, was built using this model. Among all the behaviors formed, an ugly manifestation came out of the equation: cyberbullying.
Using my research, I have identified the variables of Trigger, Action, Reward and Investment in accordance to the ‘hook canvas’ with regards to the behaviour of cyberbullying.
Trigger
Internal triggers:
- Boredom
- Vengeance
- Jealousy
- Envy
- Aggression
- Hunger for power
External triggers:
- Peer pressure
- Herd mentality
- Potential target/identification of ideal victim
- Encountering displeasing content
Actions
Forms
- Hate speech
- Abuse of language
- Harassment
- Discrimination
Mediums
- Comments
- Messages
- Doxxing
- Misuse of content
Reward
Tribe
- Social acceptance
- Recognition
- Attention
Hunt
- Response
- Reaction
- Retaliation
Self
- Entertainment
- Epicaricacy
- Delusional Justice
- Vigilantism
Investment
The total amount of time and effort that was committed by a user of a whole cycle of a trigger, action and reward.
Phase 2: Ideation
Behaviour Design
Using Fogg’s Behaviour Model of B=MAP (Behaviour = Motivation x Ability x Prompt), I decided to decrease the variables as in a means to break up the formation of dysfunctional habits:
- Disrupt users with high levels of motivation
- Deter users with high levels of ability
- Discipline users who are both highly able and motivated
This would reduce the likelihood of the formation of such behaviour all together.
User Flows
I started to draw up the flow of how acts of abuse of language would norally be carried out and experimented with different designs to alter the behaviour, keeping in mind not to limit the users’ freedom of speech.
My Recommendations:
1) Community Guideline Pop-up
By using machine learning, violative comments will be automatically detected and community guideline screens will intervene. This will cause a smart disruption to the behaviour of cyberbullying, especially for users who are not aware of their actions.
2) Explain Yourself
By adding a ‘explanation box’, users who want to their comment to go through would have to take on an extra step. This acts as a deterrence as it increases the user effort needed to go through with their action.
3) Suspension
Users who frequently violate community guidelines will have to face the music (hehehehe did you geddit?:-)) with measures like ‘time-outs’. A simple annoyance will definitely teach them to think twice as there are finally consequences for their actions.
4) Censorship
As inspired by online games that I play, profanity words can be altered into other forms of text, denying the perpetrator of being able to find the instant gratification of committing his act. Of course, I acknowledge that censorship limits freedom of speech, which might gives users the wrong idea.
5) Restriction of Screenshots & Screen-recordings
Despite users being able to control the ability of viewers to download their videos, sexual predators are able to take actions into their own hands by secretly recording or taking a screenshot of content. I highly propose that all such behaviour be immediately intervened and ceased. This would help protect the privacy of users on the platform and prevent user misconduct.
Conclusion
With my design recommendations, I aspire to improve the trust and safety of the user experience in TikTok, illuminating the ideal environment that inspires creativity and brings joy.
The best part about this whole passion project was talking to the TikTok users about their raw, emotional experiences. It got me to fall in love with the whole social issue. That really motivated and kept me going throughout my whole design journey.
To my readers, thank you for your time! Feel free to share your thoughts as every single contribution will be reflected upon and this will expand my capacity to learn and grow!
Come and connect with me on LinkedIn! Or watch my TikTok video format case study here!