Do you know which age group has the largest population in Canada?

It's the Baby Boomers!

‍"The baby boomer generation, comprising people aged 56 to 75, continues to be the largest in Canada, despite the fact that they are aging. The 2021 Census counted 9,212,640 baby boomers. This generation accounts for just under one-quarter (24.9%) of the Canadian population."¹

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Why does this matter?

The largest age demographic in Canada is transitioning into retirement. This transition brings significant changes, including challenges like loss of identity, heightened anxiety, and loneliness. Women typically outlive their male partners by around 4 years, making it vital to build strong relationships and a robust social network early on to find support during tough times. Maintaining friendships throughout retirement not only provides a support system but also reduces the risk of dementia, loneliness, and physical disabilities that come with aging. It contributes to overall well-being, promoting a long and fulfilling life.

Objectives

The goal of this research is to gain insight into the challenges that women face while transitioning into retirement, and navigating their retired lives. Specifically looking at their social circles post-retirement.

• Do women feel more socially isolated after retirement?
• Where do their friends live? Who do they spend time with and how often do they see them?
• Do they seek out new friendships?

Let's Find Out

Participant Criteria

1. Age 56+
2. Lives in Canada
3. Uses a smartphone
4. Identifies as a woman
5. Is retired

Interview Insights

Through three user interviews conducted via Zoom, I discovered that retired women do not experience increased loneliness after retirement. Quite the opposite, they are thriving in this phase of life, relishing the freedom to pursue their interests and activities at their own pace.

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This is where I needed to revaluate how I can best help retired women because my hypothesis that they were more lonely post retirement was wrong.

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During these interviews multiple themes arose and the top three were:

• Embracing New Experiences & Hobbies
• Seeing & Making Friends
• Giving Back & Volunteering

I chose to focus on Embracing New Experiences & Hobbies because this was the area with the most pain points that I could help address.

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Insight Statement

"It's important to embrace retirement with an open mind by seeking new experiences, hobbies, and connecting with others that have similar interests. Trying new things and improving old skills are top of mind because there's a lot more time to do so now."

How might we...

How might we empower women identifying retirees [age 56 - 75] to connect with others through new hobbies and experiences so that they can foster new friendships which can help mitigate health risks associated with aging?

Testing & Learning

Once V1 of the prototype was complete I conducted a total of ten usability tests with the target demographic and gave them these five tasks.

1. Add Hiking to Saved Activities
2. Start an Activity
3. Invite a Friend
4. View Activity Details
5. Complete the Activity

The sessions output really highlighted where I could improve the experience for Martine. I did two rounds of revisions based on ten interviews and prioritized improvements in a prioritization matrix. This led to my first prototype evolving a lot and in turn allowed me to create a better and more efficient user experience for my final high fidelity prototype.

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Prototype V1

To V4

Next Steps for Seasons

Reflections

Being a great UX Designer requires the ability to eliminate personal biases and tackle problems that extend beyond your own immediate experiences. During the process of creating Seasons, I gained valuable insights into user empathy and the art of designing for a demographic that I am not a part of personally. By approaching the task from a more detached perspective, I believe I was better equipped to come up with an innovative and effective solution for my primary user.

Appendix

¹A generational portrait of Canada’s aging population from the 2021 Census - Statistics Canada