Needfinding Framework Internet Freedom PDF

A NEEDFINDING
FRAMEWORK FOR
INTERNET FREEDOM
1
OPENING LETTER
The Internet Freedom Needfinding Framework is a tool to help you better understand the needs of users
of Internet Freedom Tools - open and accessible technologies that promote human rights and open
societies. It is our belief that only through truly understanding needs can we build effective and useful
Internet Freedom Tools and the services and programs that support them such as training curriculums
and outreach programs. These needs can span usability, utility, threats, culture, and much more.
This framework is intended for anyone operating in the realm of Internet Freedom, in particular those
who design and develop technology. It can also be utilized by advocates, trainers, funders and many
others.
This framework contains a great deal of information and it is not intended to be read cover-to-cover by
most readers. Instead, we encourage you to take a “choose your own adventure” approach and review
the parts of this framework will be most useful to you. We have provided information in the introductory
sections about different ways to approach the framework for readers of different backgrounds and with
different goals.
This is the first publication of this framework. This is a living document that will update and change
as it is used and improved. You can always find the most up-to-date version of this framework at
secondmuse.com/internetfreedom. While we have the privilege of being the creators and caretakers
of this framework, we believe it ultimately belongs to the community and we would like your support in
improving it. We invite your questions, feedback, and even additions to this work. Please send them to
internetfreedom@secondmuse.com.
Thank you,
Michael, Katey, Roxann and SecondMuse
2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
3 Intro to the Internet Freedom Needfinding Framework
5 How to Use This Framework
6
Framework Element Matrix
8 Using this Framework: A Guide
13 Who Uses This Framework?
15 Funding Your Needfinding Work
17 Privacy, Cultural Understanding, and Translation Considerations
19 Guidelines for Engaging with Participants
23 Framework Elements
24 Establishing Goals and Research Questions
26 Developing a Research Plan
29 Conducting Interviews
32 Intercept Interviews
34 Shadow Activity
37 Visual Exercises
41 Facilitating Group Convenings
45 Developing Personas
48 Designing the Analysis Process
APPENDIX
53 Appendix 1.1 - Dharamsala, India Research Plan
58 Appendix 1.2 - TorDev (Iceland) Research Plan
63 Appendix 2.1 - Internet Freedom & Dharamsala Landscape Analysis Interview Guide
67 Appendix 2.2 - Dharamsala Pre-Fieldwork Interview Guide
71 Appendix 2.3 - Dharamsala Fieldwork Interview Guide
76 Appendix 2.4 - TorDev (Iceland) Interview Guide
79 Appendix 3.1 - TorDev Intercept Interview Questions
81 Appendix 3.2 - Dharamsala Intercept Interview Questions
82 Appendix 4.1 - Dharamsala Activity Shadow
87 Appendix 5.1 - Dharamsala Fieldwork Visual Exercises
94 Appendix 5.2 - TorDev (Iceland) Fieldwork Visual Exercises
101 Appendix 6.1 - Dharamsala Fieldwork Group Convening
1
2
INTRO TO THE INTERNET FREEDOM
NEEDFINDING FRAMEWORK
There is a system of people, relationships and technology During the creation of this framework, SecondMuse spoke
that create the right environment in order for an Internet with a range of developers, designers, trainers and others
Freedom Tool1 (IFT) to be effective and widely used. How working in the Internet Freedom space and found a broad
do we begin to understand that “system” or “environment”? and consistent desire for ways to better understand user
How do we identify and engage with intermediaries2 and needs. Supporting these groups, particularly those involved
users to inform the tool development process? How do we directly in the development of Internet Freedom tools, in
use a deep understanding of users’ needs and reality to gaining a deeper understanding of what is happening in
create more effective, useful and useable tools? the lives of users will allow them to have a bigger impact
through the tools that they create. Some of the things we
This Needfinding framework is a tool to help the creators heard from developer in particular was an interest in:
of such tools, as well as intermediaries and researchers
associated with them, address those questions. ■■ A clearer picture of who the user really is.
■■ Knowing what is unique about a certain group of
One of the most effective approaches to deeply users and what is shared across user communities
understanding a person or group of people is human- in the IFT space.
centered design. This approach, which taps into empathy ■■ Knowing who to talk to, when to talk to them and
as a source of innovation, has been proven effective in how.
industries from social services to financial services to ■■ A process to understand how security and privacy fit
product design. SecondMuse has created a framework into a user’s life priorities.
for applying a human-centered design approach to the ■■ Understanding what makes a user adopt a tool or
realm of Internet Freedom. Applying this framework can not - especially their tool.
simultaneously complement and push tool development ■■ Where to start if they want to include users in the
further in addressing the needs of the users they are meant development process earlier than seeking feedback
to serve, resulting in more usable software, increased user once a tool is released.
engagement, growing user bases, more effective training
curriculums, and more. We have an opportunity as a These and other topics informed the design of the
community to explore its application to the IFT space and empathy-based Internet Freedom Needfinding Framework.
this work is the start of that very important community Needfinding is the process within human-centered
conversation. design that determines the needs of an individual and/or
1
Internet Freedom Tools are software applications developed to solve the
technical challenges of anonymity, privacy, security and information access.
2
An intermediary is an organization that offers services and support to
others, such as security tool training or media outreach and management.
3
community. It is the foundation for developing compelling solution that reflect what is happening in the world. What you find
in this framework is designed to be a resource that can complement what you and your team are already doing. Help you to
think about where you are in your own process, how users fit in and the questions you have related to your target users. The
following are the components of Internet Freedom Needfinding:
■■ Developing a Research Plan: How to design your user engagement process

■■ Establishing Goals & Research Questions: How to identify the focus of your research and what you hope to achieve
■■ Conducting Interviews: How to ask effective questions to get to deeper motivations and needs
■■ Conducting Intercept Interviews: How to leverage shorter interactions with participants to help your research
■■ Conducting Activity Shadow: How to identify and learn from observing activities that shed light on their needs,
motivations and at times use of IFTs
■■ Designing Visual Exercises: How to design and facilitate research activities that the participant creates
■■ Facilitating Group Convening: How to design and facilitate a group of participants through a series of activities and
questions
■■ Developing Personas: How to create composites of users with common behaviors, attitudes and motivation
■■ Designing the Analysis Process: Hot to make sense of what you are learning and experiencing from research
This framework is a series of exercises, templates and guidance that will help you and your team begin your journey to a
deeper understanding of users and thus further improving the reach and impact of your tool. Each section has 5 main parts:
1. Definition - a description of the activity and methodology

2. Overview - a preview and summary of the section
3. Why - lays out the purpose of this activity and what you will gain from doing it
4. How - takes you through the steps and mindset to adapt the activity to your use
5. Example & Additional Resources - provides you with a sample of a document that shows how the SecondMuse team
used the same method in the work that informed this project. This may also include other reference materials like
books, blogs, examples, etc. to look into if you would like to learn more about this particular approach.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Although this framework is inspired by human-centred design, this is not an attempt to replace that methodology. If you are
interested in learning more about that approach we encourage you to seek out institutions like Stanford University’s d.school
as well as books and online trainings like 101 Design Methods by Vijay Kumar and GameStorming: A Playbook for Innovators,
Rulebreakers, and Changemakers by Dave Gray, Sunni Brown, James Macanufo, and Acumen Fund’s Human-Centered
Design for Social Impact series with IDEO.org, just to name a few. There are numerous resources out there. The purpose
of this section is to share with this particular community (Internet Freedom tool users, tool developers, advocates, funders,
intermediaries, etc.) a selection of the techniques and approaches that were used to gain understanding into the perspectives
of developers and users, specifically in Dharamsala and Reykjavik, to understand their needs.
I NT RO TO TH E I N T ER N E T F R EED O M N EED F IND ING FR A MEWO R K 4

HOW TO USE THIS
FRAMEWORK
This framework contains a lot of content and there are many ways to
engage with it. This chapter helps you figure out how to start and
general guidelines to follow. The Guide section below offers three
suggested levels of engagement with this content. The Privacy,
Translation and Cultural Understanding section reviews important
considerations for employing this framework regardless of how
comprehensively you engage with each element within it.
This framework is organized in a logical order for a

comprehensive use of the entire framework, but each
element can be used on its own or in combination
with others. The following matrix briefly
reviews what each framework element is,
how complex it is to implement an element
in terms of time and experience required
to utilize it effectively, and what
engagement plans they are a part
of as seen in the next section:
the guide.
5
OVERVIEW: THE NEEDFINDING FRAMEWORK
FRAMEWORK
DEFINITION
ELEMENT
Goals and research questions serve as the compass for your journey to
Establishing Goals and
1
understanding the needs of an individual or community by guiding the
Research Questions development of every exercise and action and keeping you anchored as you
learn new information.
A Research Plan is an overview of why you are talking to users and influential
Developing a
2 Research Plan
stakeholders, who you are talking to, what methods you are using to understand
users and where.
A common tool used in journalism, social science, hiring and needfinding, which
3 Conducting Interviews typically involves verbal exchange over a series of questions that seek to provide
a deeper understanding of a story, person, place, or event.
Intercept Interviews are designed to increase understanding and dialogue

4 Intercept Interviews through a series of quick questions that take no more than 10 to 15 minutes of
dialogue.
Spending time in the natural environment of your subject to observe their

5 Shadow Activity everyday activities, realities and constraints and or challenges associated with
a specific activities or activities in order to gain understanding and empathy.
A visual exercise is an activity that engages the participant in physically drawing

6 Visual Exercises or writing ideas on paper, followed by time for participants to share and answer
questions about what they created.
A Group Convening is a multi-hour session where people from a shared social

Facilitating Group
7 Convenings
network spend time together discussing a curated set of topics and activities to
unlock needs through group dynamics.
Personas represent a composite of users with common behaviors, attitudes and

8 Developing Personas motivations who exhibit similar behavioral patterns in their use of information
and technology to achieve a goal.
Analysis is the opportunity to understand what you are experiencing in your

Designing the Analysis
9 Process
research. It encompasses a series of activities that can be done alone or in a
group that allows you to think differently and empathetically about your user(s).
HOW TO US E TH I S F R A M EWO R K 6
COMPLEXITY LIGHT STANDARD EXTENDED
[ 1 -3 ] ENGAGEMENT ENGAGEMENT ENGAGEMENT
8
USING THIS FRAMEWORK: A GUIDE
The intention of this framework is to enable anyone to use what is most relevant for them, and to modify each component as
they see fit. We offer three approaches (outlined below) as starting points for engaging the framework. Remember that each
of these is simply a guide - feel free to adapt it to fit your skills, needs and context.
LIGHT TOUCH ENGAGEMENT

Key Activities:
A light touch engagement is an accessible yet still meaningful entry point
■■ Establish goals and
for understanding users if you have limited experience in needfinding,
research questions.
limited time to execute a needfinding process, or both.
■■ Conduct 6-12 interviews
Estimated Time Needed: and intercepts
You will likely spend between 3.5 to 5 days total to complete a light ■■ Perform a basic analysis
touch engagement. Expect about one day of preparation (establishing process based on your
goals, preparing research guide, identifying interviewees and initial research questions.
coordinating interviews), 1.5 to 3 days for interviews (at least 2 hours
per interview: half hour of prep, an hour interview, and a half hour
debrief), and 1 day of analysis.
Get Started:
The single most important starting point is to establish the goals and research questions for your project. If you do nothing
else, this single exercise will allow you to continually orient your work toward what you aim to accomplish.
Following the development of goals and questions, conducting interviews is the most accessible way to start collecting
information to serve those goals. Frame your interview questions in ways that will provide answers to your research
questions and thus serve your overall goals.
Identifying and reaching the best individuals to interview can take time. Start with those who are relatively easy to access
and help you gain the understanding you desire. For example, if one of your goals is to better understand your user, reach
out to people you know who use your tool. Use these interviews with familiar individuals to practice your interview skills and
hone your interview guide. Once you have practiced and revised, you can begin to reach out to those you know less well,
and begin to interview users with different backgrounds, skills and experiences to gain a deeper understanding. You can
ask people in your social network as well as the people you interview for other suggestions on who else to interview, what
relevant events you should attend, and for any other resources such as blogs and research papers that can provide you with
valuable knowledge.
In addition to scheduled interviews, use convenings, forums and conferences to connect with people to further your contextual
understanding all the while continuing to work toward your research goals. When you have limited time or encounter an
unexpected but important stakeholder engage them with intercept interviews rather than full interviews.
When you have conducted a reasonable number of interviews and intercepts (a great goal is to conduct at least 10 interviews
and/or intercept engagements to start) conduct a basic analysis process by answering your original research questions
based on the data you have collected and adjust your questions and goals based on your new understanding. The most
important part of the analysis process is debriefing, which is a simple and brief analysis session after every major thing
you do such as an interview or a group convening. Debriefing is important because you quickly lose details and nuanced
understanding as time passes after an activity or interview. Remember to debrief after every exercise you conduct.
STANDARD ENGAGEMENT
Key Activities:
A standard engagement enables you to dive deeper into understanding
■■ Develop a full research plan.
your users and can still be done without significant experience in
needfinding ■■ Conduct 4-8 interviews,
then reevaluate research
Estimated Time Needed: plan and interview guide
You will likely spend a total of 3 weeks to complete a standard and conduct additional
engagement. You can expect approximately 5 days of planning interviews as needed.
(developing research plan, preparing interview guide, visual activities, ■■ Conduct a group convening,
identifying interviewees and coordinating interviews, site visits, group including visual exercises.
engagement), 7 days for information gathering (at least 2 hours
■■ Conduct a shadow activity.
per interview: half hour of prep, an hour interview, and a half hour
debrief), and 3 days of analysis of findings. These three weeks of ■■ Perform basic analysis
work will likely need to be spread out over a longer period of time due after each interview, group
to the logistics involved with executing such a process. convening, and shadow.
■■ Perform a detailed
Get Started: analysis based on research
The starting point for a standard engagement is to go beyond simply questions at least twice
establishing the goals and research questions for your project and to during the process.
develop a full research plan. This plan should be a living document that
changes as you move forward, gain new insights, allow you to modify
your approach as needed, add new research questions, and come up
with additional activities. Despite the evolving nature of this plan, you should complete it to the best of your ability as your
first step realizing it will likely evolve and also serve as an anchor to you throughout your discovery.
After you’re sufficiently satisfied with your research plan, your next step will be to develop a list of potential interviewees in
an interview guide and then start with a few initial interviews. These interviewees should represent multiple perspectives
in the goals and research questions you have defined. With the longer time span that comes with a standard engagement
versus a light touch engagement, plan your interviews in phases so you can accommodate increased understanding you
will gain throughout the process. Start by interviewing 4 to 8 individuals with a range of backgrounds and expertise that are
relevant to your research goals. Then pause and re-evaluate your list of potential interviewees and the interview guide before
continuing with additional interviews.
An important component of a standard engagement is to break out of simply performing one-on-one interviews. Do this
by conducting a facilitated group convening where potential users are brought together to discuss a curated set of topics
and activities. The context of a group convening allows you to unlock additional needs through facilitating conversation and
observing how a group responds and builds on each other’s experience and perspective. Logistics can feel like a barrier to
convene groups of users. However, this can be mitigated by working with intermediary organizations, such as human rights
advocacy groups, that have existing relationships with potential users. Not only can intermediary groups alleviate some of the
logistical burden of finding users, but think through and articulate how your work can positively impact their mission. Work
together as allies to gather accurate, quality data. You can also take advantage of other convenings, such as conferences and
workshops, to reduce the logistical challenges.
Group convenings are an excellent place to utilize visual exercises. These activities leverage creative expression as opposed
to strictly verbal communication in order to understand your user and unlock their needs. Visual exercises do not need to
be restricted to group convenings, however, they can be utilized during individual interviews or with small groups convened
opportunistically at events or workshops.
With the increased number of information collecting exercises in the standard engagement comes an increased need for
focused analysis of your findings. Design an analysis process that will allow you to follow up with a debrief (brief analysis)
after every activity - interviews, convening, and shadows - so that information is captured and processed while it is still
fresh in your mind. Also take time during your multiple points in the process to do more focused sessions to draw out trends,
patterns and surprises from a series of completed research activities. You can also develop personas as part of your analysis
process if you determine that will be helpful in addressing your research goals.
An example of a standard engagement is SecondMuse’s work with digital activists from Vietnam. The approach, data and
analysis from this work are detailed in Understanding Internet Freedom: Vietnam’s Digital Activists.
EXTENDED ENGAGEMENTS
Key Activities:
An extended research engagement with this framework includes all of
■■ Develop a full research plan
the elements of a standard engagement, but in a much more rigorous
which includes time on the
form.
ground with the community
of users you seek to
Estimated Time Needed:
understand.
This type of engagement will require a minimum of 6 weeks, but 8
■■ Conduct 8-12 interviews,
weeks is suggested (this includes at least two weeks spent immersed
then reevaluate research
within a community of users or potential users). The team conducting
plan and interview guide
the research should be at least three individuals, ideally including
and conduct additional
one person who is intimately familiar with the community you are
interviews as needed.
working with. Ample time should be allowed to process and analyze
the results following the research engagement. Keep in mind that these ■■ Conduct a group convening,
6 to 8 weeks will likely not be consecutive - planning such an in depth including visual exercises.
engagement takes time to handle things out of your control, such as
■■ Conduct shadow activities.
waiting on travel plans, interviewees, and conflicting schedules of team
■■ Perform basic analysis
members and participants.
after each interview, group
convening, and shadow.
Get Started:
In the light and standard engagements, much of the suggested activities ■■ Perform a detailed
involve being opportunistic by taking advantage of existing events and analysis based on research
gatherings. For an extended engagement with this framework, we questions at least twice
suggest that you plan and execute an extended research engagement in during the process, possibly
partnership with a community of users and potential users - spending including the development
time in the field with users. of personas.
The elements of a standard engagement should be scaled to support

this extended research engagement. When planning interviews, you may
wish to focus early interviews on identifying potential user communities to work with. Conduct multiple group convenings
focusing on different groups of users with different priorities and concerns. Conduct multiple shadow activities with a
diversity of organizations or individuals. Plan repeated analysis activities throughout the process, particularly when in the
field for the extended research engagement.
Take the time during an extended engagement to conduct at least one shadow activity. Shadowing allows you to observe
needs through an extended engagement with individuals or groups over the course of a meaningful period of time - ideally
two weeks - where you can observe and spend time with users in a setting that is natural to them such as a typical daily
activity, work task or meeting. Spending a day or an afternoon with potential users opens up yet another avenue for
uncovering needs, this time through the observation of daily behavior.
The extended engagement also gives you a wealth of data with which you can create meaningful personas. Develop personas
as part of your analysis process if you determine that will be helpful in addressing your research goals.
An example of an advanced application of this framework, including an extended research engagement, is SecondMuse’s
work with the Tibetan Exile Community in Dharamsala, India. The approach, data and analysis from this work are detailed in
Understanding Internet Freedom: The Tibetan Exile Community.
If you are planning an advanced application of this framework we invite you to reach out to us. We are happy to advise you
on your approach based on our own experience. You can reach us at internetfreedom@secondmuse.com.
WHO USES THIS FRAMEWORK?
This framework is a comprehensive document with a number of points of entry. It is also intended to be used by a range of
different individuals with different experience and skill levels. Here are a few examples of different users of the framework:
A project manager for an organization developing Internet Freedom tools that has struggled with usability concerns.
The project manager identifies a few key user groups and puts together a Needfinding research plan based on the light
engagement approach that leverages upcoming events and conferences to organize interviews and small group convenings
with representative members of those user groups. The project manager has limited research experience so they regularly
seek advisement and feedback from more experienced researchers and other users of the framework as they establish and
progress through the research plan.
A designer and developer struggling with user turnover in a new Internet Freedom related software tool. The developer,
who has limited access to resources, puts together a set of key questions and builds an interview guide around it, following
the light engagement described above. They then set up eight interviews with a diverse range of individuals who have
expressed an interest in the tool but have not become regular users, focusing on understanding the reasons their interest
was piqued but did not lead to consistent usage.
A trainer developing a new training curriculum. After building a plan based on the standard engagement, the trainer
shadows an existing training event and follows up with the participants both immediately after the event and three months
later to understand the value they received or missed during it. The trainer incorporates learnings from this into new training
programs.
A funder reviewing grant proposals seeks those addressing key needs. The funder understands the basics of Needfinding
by reading the introductory sections of the framework and browsing through the elements and appendix. They are better
able to recognize proposals that have a competent understanding of the needs they are addressing, and can advise proposal
which look promising but do not yet have a satisfactory plan for user engagement.
An experienced researcher seeking deeper knowledge about a community and a specific tool. The researcher uses the
framework to outline a comprehensive research plan based on the advanced engagement approach centered around the
context of the specific tool, using input from developers of the tool to understand the key points of knowledge that they seek.
The researcher executes the plan alongside developers of the tool and has usable versions of the tool on hand for interviews,
visual exercises, and other activities.
1413
1514
F U N DING YOUR N EEDF I N DI N G WO R K
During the process of designing this framework we important to accurately estimate time and expense. Pushing
learned that funders of Internet Freedom related work too far too fast can easily set you up for more work than
also see a necessary value in understanding the needs you intended, which can easily lead to inaccurate results.
of users. Most developers and organizations we spoke
with did not yet have the resources to support this sort Carefully plan out expenses associated with your
of work, and this section is intended to help address that needfinding work and resist the urge to reduce overall cost
gap. Here are a few guidelines for how to incorporate this by under-estimating expenses. For example, if you are
approach into your next proposal, along with some things going to head to events, how many people will go? How
to consider when doing so. much does it cost to stay near the event? Is there an entry
fee to the event? What are the miscellaneous expenses of
Prior to proposing any Needfinding work as part of those involved such as food and permits or visas? If you
your Internet Freedom related project, it is important are going to a location where you don’t speak the local
to establish the research questions and goals you will language, how much will it cost to hire a translator? Who
be addressing, and outline a research plan. This will be will be your on-the-ground coordinator, and how much
the basis for your work, and will be necessary in order might they cost? Walk yourself through your research plan
to accurately estimate the time and expense required to and consider each expense along the way.
conduct the needfinding.
Think about what your funder will look for as a result of
Based on your research plan, pull out the different this work. It may be informative to your design process
framework elements that will be needed to execute it. You and change how you build your tool or design a training
can treat each element of the framework as a distinct item, program, but how will you express these things to the
estimate the costs for that item, and multiply the cost by entity that funded this work? Will a simple summary
the number of times you intend to conduct it. For example, suffice or will they be looking for a more comprehensive
you can estimate the time required to conduct an interview and shareable report? This should be at the beginning of
and multiply that by the number of interviews you intend any section in your proposal dealing with needfinding.
to conduct. Please be mindful of lower costs that come
with repeating work. For example, it may take you a day to Finally, before inserting this plan into your proposal, be
come up with and review an interview guide, but that only clear in justifying the importance of it to your process. Why
needs to be done once for a series of interviews. do you need to implement this Needfinding process? What
value will it provide, why it is well suited to provide that
Regarding scope, we strongly suggest a light engagement value? This approach may not be familiar to the potential
if this is your first time working with this Needfinding funder you are working with, and the responsibility is on
framework or something similar. Needfinding can be your to convey its value.
challenging work and experience in conducting it is
16
17
PRIVACY, CULTURAL UNDERSTANDING,
AND TRANSL ATION CONSIDERATIONS
There are a few important topics to consider, regardless of the approach taken, when implementing this needfinding
framework. These are the privacy of the participants, establishing a cultural understanding of the community you are working
with, and understanding the role and challenges of translation.
P R I VA C Y
First and foremost, it is critical to think through the privacy of the participants in your needfinding work. Participants should
always be made aware of your intended outcome for the data and how information about them will be both protected and
shared, as well as, how the information they provide will be used in that outcome. This should occur before any data collection
or related research activities have begun. Below are three suggested questions to ask all participants before beginning:
■■ Are there any security concerns we should be aware of related to this interview and documentation of conversations
relating to it?
■■ Are you comfortable with us taking notes while we are with you (and/or) recording this discussion (and/or) taking
photos or video? (Be sure to explain why you are taking notes, where they will be stored, and how they will be
protected)
■■ What restrictions should we be aware of regarding the publishing and sharing of information learned here?
Asking these questions alone, however, is not enough. It is your responsibility to ensure that they are communicated
effectively, which may require modifying or translating them. It is also your responsibility to bring contextual awareness and
understand what activities may be risky or damaging, even if the participant is not aware of it.
For example, if a participant tells you it is okay to use their own name while taking notes but you know from your research
that it could pose a problem for this person in particular, it is your responsibility to either dig deeper into the conversation until
you are satisfied that they fully understand and accept any risk. If you cannot establish that, it is your responsibility to refrain
from documenting or sharing anything that could potentially bring harm to the participant. You can also solicit the advice of
a cultural or subject matter expert for help in preparing to address privacy and security concerns.
C U LT U R A L U N D E R S T A N D I N G
The global nature of Internet Freedom means you will likely engage with members of cultures and communities that are quite
different from your own. It is your responsibility to ensure you approach your work in a culturally appropriate manner. This
is both out of respect for the participants you are working with and for developing a greater understanding of what you learn
while working with them.
When developing your research plan, prioritize early work to develop a better understanding of the community or individuals
you will be working with. Seek to understand customary interpersonal behavior such as greetings, signs of respect, and
communication style. If you will be working with them in person, understand what constitutes appropriate attire and body
language. Go further by developing an understanding of social and cultural history of the participants, which can greatly
inform what you take away from the time you spend with them.
T R A N S L AT I O N
Like cultural understanding, translation is also an important consideration of globally conscious work. Identifying
and working with a translator that you trust and can be consistently engaged is a big benefit. Even when
you are speaking with participants who speak English, using a translator to communicate in a native
language can provide richer results. Here are a few important guidelines to consider when working
with a translator:
■■ Needfinding activities generally take twice as long to complete when working with a
translator. Plan appropriately.
■■ Talk with your translator about the “why” of your work - why are you taking this
approach? What are you looking to get out of it? They will better be able to
translate and support when they are aware of this context.
■■ Ask your translator to translate your statements directly, without
paraphrasing or modifying them. Ask them to inform you immediately
about changes made in the moment to facilitate understanding so you
can note them for future discussion or correct a miscommunication.
■■ Translators with some contextual knowledge on technology and
Internet Freedom will be better suited to help you analyze
what you learn in addition to simply translating. They can
also be helpful in reviewing materials you are developing,
such as guides and exercises.
Oftentimes a translator will be performing other roles

in the project, perhaps even as a member of the
research team. Establish an understanding early
on about the role you’d like them to play and
check in regularly throughout your work.
19
GUIDELINES FOR ENGAGING
W I T H PA R T I C I PA N T S
There are many different tools and exercises in this framework, but they all share the common component of facilitating your
engagement with participants - whether they be users, developers, or representatives of intermediary organizations. The
guidelines in this section are relevant to every framework element you see below.
E M PAT H Y A N D T H E R E S E A R C H P R O C E S S
Empathy can be defined as your ability to understand and share the feelings of another person. This ability is central to all
Needfinding work. Empathy is not a switch you can turn on - it takes time to establish a relationship where a participant feels
comfortable sharing thoughts and feelings with you, and for you to be able to draw the conclusions you seek from it. Below
is a graph that demonstrates the research process and the role of empathy through engagement with a participant or group
of participants:
Explore
Emotions
Question
Statements
Evoke
Stories
Thank &
Wrap-up
Build
Intro Rapport
Intro Project
Yourself
Empathy Curve, Stanford d.school. time
This process can happen over the course of an entire interview or within the context of specific exercises during a group
convening.
ENCOURAGE STORY TELLING
Encouraging participants to tell stories is an important part of a robust Needfinding approach. When an individual shares a
story instead of simply answering a question you are often able to draw out a greater range of details around their experiences
and ask even more insightful follow up questions. Similarly, when people are able to share what is important to them in the
natural way they communicate this engenders trust. Trust is critical for you to be able to gain a deeper understanding of how
your tool and/or service fits or doesn’t fit into their lives. Creating the types of interactions that make storytelling possibly can
often be done simply by asking for an example when a participant talks about something interesting or something you want
to understand better. You can even prompt stories directly by asking a participant to tell you a story about a certain topic
or occurrence. Other elements in the framework, such as, visual exercises and group convenings also aid in helping people
share their context and personal experiences which are at the heart of storytelling.
Storytelling is also encouraged by embracing good practices around interview questions, observation, and coordination with
your team. Below are a few tips for doing great research. Adherence to these tips will support you in drawing out meaningful
stories:
1. Watch first, believe what you see, and ask questions later.
2. Avoid binary questions.
3. Ask “why?”
4. Pay attention to nonverbal cues.
5. Be patient: trust your question and wait.
6. Learn their language, such as preferred terminology for different concepts, and use it.
7. Ask questions neutrally, one at a time.
8. Connect and coordinate with your teammates.
9. Capture it all with notes and recordings, if appropriate.
10. Be patient. People need time to put together their thoughts. Don’t feel a need to fill that space with meaningless
chatter or rush on to the next question.
20
21
O B S E R VAT I O N
The most valuable tool you have in your research process is your own ability
to observe. No matter how focused your research priorities are, observing a
range of things around you will have an impact on what you learn. This includes ■■ Activities
■■ Activities
everything from paying attention to how the world works for the users, to the
things a user surrounds themselves with. AEIOU is a simple acronym to help you ■■■
■ Environment
Environment
remember what to look for in the field. Here is what it means:
■■ Interactions
Interactions
Remember that all of these elements can be meaningful despite your focus. ■■■
■ Objects
Objects
For example, even if you are looking into something as specific as how people
■■ U (People)
use a mobile app, there are still going to be valuable insights to gain from the ■■ U (People)
environment, such as where they store or carry their mobile device in their
office, and a users’ interactions with others, such as their co-workers.
DEBRIEFING
One of the most important things you can do throughout your process is to immediately debrief with your team after each
activity even if you only have 15 minutes. Debriefing while information is still fresh in your mind is essential. No matter how
good your notes are and how tired you feel after an activity, you will lose details and insights as time passes. Here is a short
list of items to consider when debriefing:
1. Initial Impressions & Knowledge Nuggets: How did this activity go and what did you learn? What are the most
valuable or interesting insights you drew from this activity?
1. Participant Life & Priorities: What are the lives and priorities of the participants both in general as they relate to
your research goals?
1. Social Connections & Roles: Who do they interact with, how, and how does that impact your research priorities?
1. What the Heck?!: Review surprising findings, unexpected context and anecdotes.
1. What Else? - End your debrief by asking this open-ended question.
This framework details how to approach debriefing and analysis ingeneral in the last section, Designing the Analysis Process.
22
21
22
23
FRAMEWORK ELEMENTS
The remainder of this framework contains descriptions, motivations, and

instructions for using each element in service of developing your own
Needfinding process. Each element also contains a corresponding set of
examples and templates in the appendix that follows.
Each element is also associated with one or more engagement types, as

outlined in the How to Use This Needfinding Framework chapter. The following
indicators reflect which engagement type a framework element is associated
with:
Light Engagement
Standard Engagement
Extended Engagement
24
ESTABLISHING GOALS
1 AND RESEARCH QUESTIONS
Definition
Goals and research questions serve as the compass for your journey to understanding the needs of an individual or community.
By guiding the development of every exercise and action, having clear goals and research questions keep you anchored as
you learn new information
Overview
Establishing your goals and the questions you seek to answer is the first and most important element of identifying needs.
You are exercising a basic needfinding inquiry on your own process: what do you want to achieve, and what do you need to
learn in order to achieve it? Once determined, these questions should remain at the core of the research you are conducting.
They are also helpful for re-calibrating the research team throughout the process.
Why
Every step in the process of needfinding should be oriented towards a greater set of goals. The goals you establish here will
provide that orientation. The first things you will ask yourself before designing and conducting any part of needfinding will
be “How am I addressing my goals? Will this provide answers to my research questions?” This will be true whether you are
choosing who in a community to interview or designing creative exercises for participants to complete.
How:
Establishing Goals
The first step is to establish your goals. These are the high level objectives that you have. Remember that these can be
revisited and revised - nothing is being carved in stone. Here are some simple questions to ask yourself:
■■ Why are we conducting this research?

■■ What are the general desired outcomes for each stakeholder in this project, including our funder or partnering
organization?
■■ What are some specific kinds of knowledge we want to get out of this research?
■■ If this research is a success, what would that look like one year from now?
The SecondMuse team established goals prior to a trip to Iceland for a Tor Project Developer Meeting. In answering the
questions above, the team reflected that they were conducting this research in order to understand the motivations and
mindsets of developers, particularly in how they interact with and think about their users. What they wanted to get out of it
FR AM E WO R K E LEM EN TS 25
was a deeper understanding of how a developer thinks about their user, what preconceived notions come to mind. They also
specifically wanted to get feedback on a few specific documents the team had developed. Here are a few of the goals they
came up with:
■■ To increase our understanding of the tool development process from the perspective of the developer.
■■ To uncover assumptions about the user’s role in the development process, the connection that developers have with
users, and prioritization of security and privacy as it relates to designing for users.
■■ To obtain feedback on framework deliverables from the perspective of what is both valuable and engaging to
developers.
■■ To build empathy by understanding Tor developers’ frames of meaning, personal experience, behaviors and emotions.
As well as security, privacy, community building, user engagement, the role of users, what’s important to developers.
A series of additional examples can be found in research plans in Appendix 1.1 and Appendix 1.2.
Establishing Research Questions
These are the questions and topics that, if answered successfully, will satisfy the goals that have been established. Occasionally
these questions will translate directly into interview questions, or questions used in various exercises described later in this
framework. More often, these are guiding questions that the researchers keep in mind every step along the way. They are
also used during follow-up analysis activities to review what was learned and organize knowledge in a way that is helpful
to the overall goals.
■■ What are the specific topics or questions that need to be addressed with this research to serve these goals?
Now that the SecondMuse team established their goals, they determined a series of specific questions directed at addressing
those goals. The team worked some of these questions into the interview guide, but more often than that came up with
additional questions in preparation for other activities that would serve to answer them. These included:
■■ How do developers approach the development process from the perspective of usability?
■■ What are the biggest challenges (pain points) in their development process?
■■ How do developers think about users?
■■ Do developers desire to engage more effectively with users? If so, where do they see their current form of
engagement as lacking?
A series of additional examples for both Objectives and Research Questions can be found in the research plans in Appendix
1.1 and Appendix 1.2.
2 DEVELOPING A RESEARCH PL AN
Definition
A Research Plan is a document that is an overview of why you are talking to users and influential stakeholders, who you are
talking to, what methods you are using to understand users and where.
Overview
Determining who you are going to speak with and spend time with, when, where and how is an important part of the human-
centered design process. Empathy-building activities, whether it is a couple of phone conversations or meeting users to look
at a prototype at a conference or spending a couple of weeks in their city, need to be planned and organized around what you
want to learn and how you seek to learn it. The following will take you through the Research Plan process: how to develop a
document that explains what you are going to do and why that will lead to not only better tool design, but also use of that tool.
The Research Plan is intended to be an overview of your entire approach. The example research plans in the appendix
are relatively brief - about four to five pages each. A Research Plan is a living document that should put the entire plan in
perspective and be easily referenced, and not be overly lengthy and cumbersome.
Why
A Research Plan gives you a centralized place to explain your user engagement strategy and approach to other developers,
intermediaries, and funders. This document is also a great place to get feedback and assistance from these groups to ensure
that you are using your time and resources most efficiently to aid in designing and/or improving your tool. Similarly, having a
Research Plan keeps you anchored throughout the research process and as you learn new information, helps you see where
it fits within what you seek to accomplish.
How
Once you have decided that it would be beneficial for you and/or your team to engage with users regardless of where you
are in your development process, it’s a good idea to capture the following categories, but edit as needed to achieve the goals
of your work:
SecondMuse developed a research plan for their visit to Dharamsala, India to work with the Tibetan Exile Community.
You can find the research plan that is discussed here in Appendix 1.1.
GOALS & OUTCOMES: Why are we conducting this research? What do we want to get out of it specifically?
What are the desired outcomes?
The visit to Dharamsala had a number of interwoven goals. We used the research plan as an opportunity to make
these high level goals explicit so we could adequately address them and understand where they overlap. This
included applying and iterating on developing a needfinding framework, identifying key needs of users as they
relate to privacy and security, and helping build a body of knowledge about how users interact with Internet
Freedom tools. For more details see the next section - Establishing Goals & Research Questions
KEY RESEARCH QUESTIONS & TOPICS: Are there specific topics or questions that need to be answered with
this research? This is a good place to list them. This is typically a list of 5-10 questions.
Given these broader goals, SecondMuse was able to distill a series of specific research questions and topics.
These would go on to be the foundation for all of the future interview guides, activities, and other exercises
developed for the time spent in Dharamsala. For more details see the next section - Establishing Goals & Research
Questions
META THEMES: As you interview and observe participants keep in mind these larger issues you are exploring.
In addition to the specific research questions that could be prioritized and answered directly in Dharamsala,
SecondMuse had other themes that it has been exploring in the Internet Freedom, usability and human centered
design space. This section provided an opportunity to highlight some of those, such as remembering to draw out
learnings that were transferable beyond the Tibetan Exile Community in Dharamsala.
APPROACH & ACTIVITIES: How are you defining the research activities to get to the goals? This is an overview
of the different types of research activities, including number and type of participants, locations, etc. This may
be primary research, secondary, etc.
Now it is time to turn these goals, questions and themes into action. The approach section was used by
SecondMuse to highlight the activities that would be undertaken to address these questions and topics. The
activities listed here are largely the other elements of the framework, though also listed are additional forms of
obtaining information such as casual observation. Goals are also listed for the number of each activity type to be
conducted.
SELECTION CRITERIA: Who are you studying and why? This section explains how you selected research
location, participants, etc.
It is important to think about who to speak to in order to address the research questions and goals. This brief
section outlines a number of key types of people and organizations that can collectively offer a comprehensive
perspective on the questions we develop.
TEAM & ROLES: Who’s going to conduct the fieldwork, number of people in-field, etc. What are the roles in-field
(i.e. leading, taking notes, video, etc.)
In the field in Dharamsala the SecondMuse team decided to take an approach that rotates all team members in
and out of each position of responsibility and spreads the commitment to participate equally, leaving reasonable
time for breaks for everybody. Having this clearly articulated in the research plan grounded the entire team in a
common set of expectations.
DRAFT SCHEDULE: This is a general sense of how the research may go and will be refined as your research
begins. Depending on the level of research this may include: team meetings and debriefs, travel time, as well as
participant research slots.
For an extended research visit like the two weeks of time spent in Dharamsala, it is often not possible to plan
a detailed agenda in advance. For an example of a brief agenda, please review Appendix 1.2 for the agenda
associated with the fieldwork SecondMuse conducted in Iceland at TorDev. For Dharamsala, the team created
an agenda that was consistently updated in the field. This agenda also contains information that is not meant for
public sharing, so only a portion of the agenda is included in this research plan.
LOGISTICS: This includes travel information, materials needed, contact information of other people participating
in the research like an in-country guide, etc.
The logistics section contains all of the logistical information that could be needed throughout the trip. This
includes travel info, hotel info, and can include emergency contacts and other support. The team traveled to
Dharamsala separately from one another so it was particularly important to keep this information up to date.
This is a working document meaning that you will continuously come back to this and it may change based on what you are
learning from others, resources and constraints you may face. It should however be finalized before you start your active
primary research; i.e. talking to users.
Additional Resources
The SecondMuse team created two Research Plans for our fieldwork in Iceland at the Tor Developer Convening and in India
working with the Tibetan exile population in Dharamsala. Appendix 1.1 and Appendix 1.2 are examples layout our plan and
design of our time on the ground.
3 CONDUCTING INTERVIEWS
Designer Note: You’ll notice paragraphs of italicized text in each of these elements. These are meant to be visually distinct:
they are an example story of the current framework element. We are open to ideas on how to incorporate them visually.
It should be something more visually distinct than just italicized text (perhaps a different color of text would suffice, but i
wonder if there are other clear visual cues as well)
Definition
An interview is a common tool used in journalism, social science, in the workplace, but is also used in Needfinding. An
interview typically involves a verbal exchange over a series of questions as one seeks to gain a deeper understanding of a
story, person, place, or event.
Overview
Interviews are used to gain understanding in human-centered design. What delineates the human-centered design interview
is that it facilitates a deeper understanding of the person, his/her life, and perspectives without attachment to an already
developed set of assumptions or hypotheses. A successful interview requires sufficient preparation to develop a relevant and
customized interview guide based on what you know about the stakeholder, communication of the purpose, process, and use
of interview to the interviewee, access to appropriate tools such as a handheld recorder or conference line with recording
capability, and clarity around the roles of the interview team. Additionally, keeping detailed notes, pulling key takeaways and
sharing across the research team is important in order to honor the time, stories and contributions of those interviewed.
Why
Interviews are one of most effective and common ways to gain a deep understanding through the perspective of an individual
or group, and multiple interviews with different participants uncover overarching themes and insights.
How
There are several important elements involved in the interview process laid out and explained below. Keep in mind this is an
ideal scenario and the availability of time and resources will impact your process.
1). Pre-Interview
Scheduling and Tracking: Set up a tracking document that lists the contact and scheduling information, who is responsible
for the interview and any existing relationships or necessary background. Keep this document in a central place to enable
multiple team members to access and participate in the scheduling and interview process.
Interview Guide: Create a generic interview guide, which is directly linked to your research objectives as a base
for each interview. Use this guide as a starting point, removing questions that aren’t a priority and adding specific
questions relevant to that particular stakeholder. A typical flow for an interview guide includes: introduction of
interviewers, background on the project, logistics (how long, acknowledgement that you are taking notes, and
permissions). Begin the interview with open-ended questions about who the stakeholder is and how they got to
where they are today. Keep in mind it is absolutely critical to let the person share. Their context is as important
as the answers to specific questions you have. After you’ve created a sense of openness and trust, you can
start specific questioning related to your research questions. When creating questions avoid “yes/no” types of
responses by designing questions to elicit stories, where interviewees not only tell you what tools they use, but
also share when, where and why they use them. For example, instead of asking “Do you like X [internet freedom
tool]?” You can ask them “Tell us a about a challenge you or your organization faced related to concerns of
privacy or security.” Then follow-up with “ Do you use, or have you ever used, software that was intended to
help manage your privacy or security online? Tell us about it.” This opens up the interview to explore a topic
deeper and thus give you a better opportunity to understand what you need to do, in this case, to improve the
tool. Wrap-up the interview by letting them know a timeline for how their interview will be used, and if necessary
a request to reach back out.
Translation and Cultural Sensitivity: test the interview guide on trusted stakeholders to ensure it is translated accurately (if
translated), that questions are worded appropriately, and it is culturally appropriate for your target audience.
At the beginning of a project to develop a framework for needfinding in the Internet Freedom Space, the SecondMuse team
got together to brainstorm a list of potential interviewees based on our own knowledge of and relationships within the
space. We created a Google document that everyone on the team had access to where we input names, contact information,
assigned responsibility for initial contact, identified the relationship of the interviewee to the Internet freedom space, and
tiered our list by priority level. Our initial target group of interviewees included academics, users, funders, intermediaries, and
developers. Later, we simplified the stakeholder groups to just three: developers, users and intermediaries. The intermediary
group included trainers, funders, advocacy groups and academics. We also compiled a general list of questions we would
ask of everyone as well as subsets of questions tailored for each stakeholder group. We then tested our interview guide with
trusted allies within the space to get a better sense of flow, timing and to see if the wording of the questions was soliciting
the information we were seeking.
2). During the Interview

Format: Typically an interview lasts 60 to 90 minutes and in person is ideal, but audio-only will work if in person is not
possible. We recommend two interviewers attend each interview; one to lead and the other to take notes. Recording is
helpful in terms of keeping other teammates in the loop and/or going back to clarify points where the notes are unclear.
When taking notes, it is best to take notes in the actual words and sentences used. Shorthand can change the meaning of
a statement significantly; also pay attention to more than just the words used, but also the tone and flow of how words and
concepts are related.
Privacy: Before you begin an interview, seek to understand the privacy needs of the participants. This includes whether or
not they are comfortable being recorded, with interviewers taking notes, and what information is OK to make note of - such
as names and affiliations.
Helpful Tips: build trust by being your authentic self and leave space for your interviewee to do the same. Listen closely
to what they are excited about, the things that are meaningful to them and make space to connect over it. It may seem silly,
but ALWAYS ask people to define concepts in their own words don’t assume even the most basic concept is universally
understood. A few examples are terms such as ‘usable,’ ‘privacy’ and ‘secure.’ These terms mean different things to different
people, make sure you understand their meaning when they are using terms that you use and are important for your work.
The SecondMuse team consisted of three core researchers. All three of us participated together in the first couple interviews
to normalize and, thereafter, we conducted interviews in pairs. For each interview, we identified a lead from the SecondMuse
team who was responsible for coordinating logistics with the interviewee, personalizing the interview guide, and leading the
interview. The interview lead is also responsible for explaining the process, asking for privacy permissions, and beginning
the recording. For in-person interviews, we used handheld recording devices with USB connections to plug directly into our
computers (less than $100). When the interview was over the phone, we used TurboBridge, which allows you to record the
call. We would explain the process for the research and the interview, ask permission to record and then let the interviewee
know when we started the recording. In terms of the role of the second interviewer, typically we would support the lead
interviewee by taking notes (housed in a Google document repository) and asking questions that the lead interviewee may
have overlooked.
3). After the Interview

Synthesize Take-Aways: After you complete your interview, review your notes and summarize the key learnings with
your interview partner. It is best to do this as soon after the interview as possible while your memories of it are fresh. This
practice will help immensely when analysing the results of your work later.
Over time, our team prioritized taking 10 minutes after the interview in a neutral setting (either by hanging up or leaving the
location and going to a nearby coffee shop) to write down the key takeaways at the top of the notes document. It was crucial
to do this while we were both fresh (even if we were tired) because it was hard to go back and make sense of the notes, but
also made it easier to go back and find key themes.
Example and Additional Resources
There are four complete interview guides included in the Appendix of this report.
You can find these in Appendices 2.1, 2.2, 2.3 and 2.4.
4 INTERCEPT INTERVIEWS
Definition
Intercept Interviews are designed to increase understanding and dialogue through a series of quick questions that take no
more than 10 to 15 minutes of dialogue.
Overview
A key component of human-centered design is to meet people where they are and be open to unexpected encounters with
relevant stakeholders. Intercept interviews are a tool that prepares you for a quick and meaningful dialogue when time is
limited to 10 to 15 minutes and/or when you have an unexpected encounter with a relevant stakeholder. The human-centered
design process requires flexibility and adaptation and intercept interviews equip you with tools to engage in quick, meaningful
dialogue despite constraints; intercept interviews are a short series of questions that aim to get at the core of something you
desire to understand from a particular stakeholder.
Why
Interview intercepts are an important tool that can be adapted to varying scenarios such as unexpected encounters, limited
time with many subjects, or to understand the relevance of a particular stakeholder or group.
How
Typically Intercept Interviews are selected questions around a very targeted topic you seek to understand. Often Intercept
Interviews are selected from a longer Interview Guide and are used in situations where a full interview is not possible,
necessary or likely. Your first intercept question should always be intended to understand who the stakeholder is and create
a human connection between the stakeholder and yourself that is conducive to opening dialogue.
Two researchers from SecondMuse attended a Tor Developer Meeting in Iceland last February. The goal of spending time at
this meeting was to observe, interview and gain an understanding of how developers approach the development process and
talk about and understand their users. Over the course of three days, the Tor developer team worked on their tool, and the
SecondMuse did our best to not interrupt the flow or schedule by having shorter one-on-one engagements with participants.
Originally we planned to do more full interviews, but we realized the most effective way to engage the developers was over
a few quick questions that in total took 15 to 30 minutes to answer rather than 60 to 90 minute interviews. For those willing
to spend a bit longer with us, we paired a series of intercept questions with a visual exercise (described later). The intercept
approach enabled our team to engage with more people at the meeting than had we strictly focused on conducting interviews
alone. Whenever possible we conducted intercepts as pairs, but at times we were separated and conducted them on our own
to have wider coverage.
Example and Additional Resources:
Intercept questions should quickly get at information that would be valuable in addressing your research questions. They
can be questions drawn from a general interview guide but should not be questions that require a great deal of contextual
background. Here are a few examples used in the intercept interview guide for SecondMuse’s time in Dharamsala, India:
■■ Initial question should build rapport and get to know the interviewee: What do you do? Where are you from? How did
you come to be interested in this area of work?
■■ How often do you think about privacy and/or security when using the Internet?
■■ Who or what comes to mind?
■■ Have you ever tried to use a new app or software that is meant to help you communicate with others and given up on
it? Why did you stop using it?
■■ Let’s say your favorite communication application no longer existed and you wanted to choose a new application to
chat with others. What are the most important things that app must be able to do?
SecondMuse also attended the TOR Developer Meeting in Reykjavik, Iceland in February 2014. We sought to understand the
perspective of the developer creating internet freedom tools. You can find the related intercept interview guide in Appendix
3.1. You can also find an example intercept guide from our time in Dharamsala in Appendix 3.2.
5 SHADOW ACTIVIT Y
Definition
Spending time in the natural environment of your subject to observe their everyday activities, realities and constraints and or
challenges associated with a specific activities or activities in order to gain understanding and empathy.
Overview
The Shadow Activity allows you to learn from and observe your stakeholder without disrupting or shaping the context of
your interaction with them. It also enables you to draw out contextual clues and realities that are not always obvious to your
stakeholder because they are so embedded in their everyday reality.
Why
The Shadow Activity allows you to gain an understanding of the contextual nuances of the stakeholder(s) you are spending
time with by observing and being present without interrupting the flow of their real life. By being present for an extended
period of time, you are able to pick up on and observe real life flows and constraints that may not be obvious to the stakeholder,
but impact the way they conduct business, communicate, and operate in their daily lives. Examples of such things that may
not come up in an interview or group convening, are power outages that impact their lives and the function of the tools they
use to communicate, the way they set-up of their home, office or space and its impact on their communication patterns and
habits, and the tools they have available to them to conduct their daily activities, which they may be so accustomed to that
they don’t explicitly call them out.
How
1). Pre-Shadow
Identify a time and activity: Often the most successful Shadow exercises emerge following an interview where you have
identified a relevant activity with your interviewee for you to attend and observe. Typically, a Shadow Exercise requires two
to three researchers who spend between four and five hours with the stakeholder.
Format: Identify who from the research team will lead the interaction while another team member may record with video and
a still camera, and the third member will support by taking notes. Understand the context of the situation you are observing.
For example, if you are attending the first four hours of the day at a local radio station, know the schedule, who will be present
and where you will be spending time.
2). During the Shadow
Introduce yourselves, explain why you’re there, be friendly, smile and develop a sense of rapport with those in the room, and
then sit back and observe. Pay attention to the environment, how the room is set up, familiarize yourself with the technical
tools available and constraints that impact the flow of the work and the day. Throughout the activity, the lead should ask many
‘why’ and ‘how’ questions to understand what you are observing, but also be able to fade into the background to observe as
well. Be prepared to pull individuals aside for more formal Intercept Interviews or full Interviews (see above) as relevant.
For the notetaker, be sure to timecode the notes, delineate questions and answers, bracket thoughts that are yours, and pay
attention to environmental factors such as number of times the power goes out, etc. Lastly, be sure to take notes in as close
to the actual words of the participant as possible to stay true to their intent and nuance.
3). After the Shadow

Sit down as a group at a neutral place NOT in the presence
of the stakeholders to pull key takeaways from the experience
Sample Schedule:
and different observations each of you had regarding the
experience. Take note of what was interesting and/or plain 1. Introductory Interview (30 minutes)
weird. 2. Shadow Activity (30 minutes to an hour)

to see your participants in their element.
Example and Additional Resources
3. Communications Tour (one hour) to see
and understand the technological tools and
For the Dharamsala research the SecondMuse team
constraints present.
conducted an Activity Shadow with Voice of Tibet, a radio
and online news provider. After having an initial interview 4. Follow-up Questions (one hour)
with the editor, the team came back the following day to
5. Offsite Internal Team Brief (one hour)
observe a new meeting in the newsroom where stories were
pitched, assigned and provided support. During the course of
the observations we learned about what tools were used and
how the different news desks – Tibetan, international, cultural news, etc. - were organized.
We also observed the power going out a number of times and the internet failing. When asked earlier about how the newsroom
works and what meetings were like, the challenges like electricity failing were never mentioned. If we had not been there,
we would have missed some vital information on how people work and their workarounds to get their stories out on time.
We were also able to observe what sites and sources journalists were using. We were surprised to learn that Facebook was
one of the main news sources to not only verify, but also give a “human face” to major news events like Tibetan rights being
shared at a UN convening and the protesting that happened outside of the meeting.
We had a series of activities at our disposal
Sample Activities:
to use during the shadowing if needed.
Introductory Interview:
Here are a couple of examples, the full list
can be found in Appendix 4.1. 1). Can you tell us a bit about yourself? Who you are?
What you do here?
Spending so much time with the team 2). When you hear the terms communication privacy
at Voice of Tibet built warm personal and security, what do you think of?
connections in addition to the great things
3). How does what you described fit into your work?
we learned while we were with them.
Daily life?
After the shadow activity we thanked
everyone for their time and expressed our
Communications Tour
appreciation for the work that they do.
(focusing more on the object than the behavior)
The complete shadow activity guide that

Ask how they use and who they are communicating with via:
was created can be found in Appendix 4.1.
■■ phone
■■ computer
■■ in-person
■■ analog (notebooks, etc.)
6 VISUAL EXERCISES
Definition
A visual exercise is an activity that engages the participant in physically drawing or writing ideas on paper, followed by time
for participants to share and answer questions about what they created.
Overview
Participants are asked to spend time individually or in small groups to draw or write their response to a set of questions and
instructions using paper and markers. Afterwards participants are asked to share what they have created and questions are
asked to draw out more detail on interesting insights that arise.
Why
Activities that engage the creative side of a participant helps unlock insights that may otherwise go unnoticed. Visual
exercises are a valuable complement to other research activities that focus solely on verbal communication. Insights often
arise through these activities that would not have emerged otherwise.
How:
Revisit your research goals and think about which questions could be answered visually. These are often
questions in which there is a lot of information to extract that could potentially be delivered more effectively in a
visual manner - such as a map of communications.
Build a self-explanatory set of instructions for the participant. A visual exercise should contain a brief
summary and set of questions that allow a participant to guide themselves through the activity with only a short
introduction.
Set the stage for your participants. Tell your participants what you will be doing and why. Give them a clear
sense of how the next period of time will be used and what the goals are so there are no unknowns. Be careful
to avoid the use of words like this will be ‘simple’ or ‘easy’ as it might not be that for everyone. Give people
adequate time and quiet to reflect and work. Don’t feel a need to make conversation, but let your participant focus.
Follow up each exercise with a sharing and discussion period. After an exercise is completed, ask participants
to share what they created with the group. It is generally not necessary for each person to share everything. The
purpose is to draw out unique insights and understand when there is broad support for ideas that are expressed.
When a participant shares a potentially unique insight, ask probing questions and have them express the idea in
more depth.
Don’t give specific examples unless necessary. Telling your users how another individual or group completed
the exercise can quickly lead to bias in the response of a participant. Use only broad suggested such as “diagrams,
photos, or even just text are acceptable.” Only resort to specific examples if the participants appear to struggle
with which direction to take.
These exercises can be adapted to suit your goals and needs. These exercises are templates that can be
modified to suit your particular goals and needs. You can adapt the tool design exercise, for example, to have
users co-create a UI for a specific element of a tool. Alternatively, you could adapt the connectivity exercise to
focus exclusively on mobile communications.
Remember
■■ Translate your visual exercises into the local language.
■■ Have plenty of paper and markers on hand for participants to use.
■■ Ask your participants to write their name or common identifier on the exercises so you can tie them into notes from
verbal communications.
Let’s take a look at the instructions created for one of the example exercises in this framework, the Connectivity Exercise.
The set of instructions here are brief and self-explanatory. Paper with these instructions, along with blank paper and drawing
materials, should can be distributed while the overall purpose is reviewed. These are some guidelines for preparing and
running a visual exercise:
In the next 5-10 minutes please (draw a picture, diagram, write out the following) complete the following task:
Who, what, how, do you stay in touch with family, friends, and colleagues?
We are interested in learning more about how you and/or your organization communicates and shares ideas and
specifically what do you use to do it. Please tell us more about how you communicate by drawing and answering
the following questions in two scenarios - Professional & Personal:
■■ Who are you communicating with?

■■ What type of information are you communicating?
■■ What access to communication technology do you have? What tools are you using?
■■ Mobile, Text, Computer, Type of software, In-person, Paper, etc...?
■■ What’s the result of your communication?
We’ll come back together and discuss what you’ve created for 10-15 minutes. We are going to cover a wide set
of topics in the conversation. In some cases we’ll be asking what appears to be more basic question. We’ll do
this so that, instead of making assumptions, we get your perspectives and your definitions in your own words.
SecondMuse utilized a group convening as the setting to conduct these exercises in Dharamsala, India with the Tibetan Exile
Community. That meant that a group of participants was gathered in the same place, and we had built some rapport with
them before going on to this exercise. By the time we began this activity we had already had a lot of discussion as a group
about different communication-related topics.
We distributed printed instructions to everyone before going over them so everyone could follow along. We gave brief context
for the activity, but focused largely on helping everyone feel comfortable by reminding them it was a tool for expression and
not a test. We reiterated that participants could express themselves in any way they want whether that means drawing a
picture, a diagram, or simply writing out their thoughts. But beyond that we did not give any instructions that were not on the
printed instructions so we did not risk biasing the outcome. Despite our desire to not bias the outcome, we did walk around
the room and make ourselves available to anyone who had questions, though there were few. We did not suggest our opinion
on the work they were creating and largely left everyone to themselves while they were drawing their responses.
Once everyone was done, about fifteen minutes later, we gathered the group together and had everyone share what they
created. We asked everyone to signal agreement when someone expressed something that they also expressed in their visual
exercise. It was during this question and answer period that the most interesting nuggets of knowledge emerged. Following
someone along as they walked through a diagram or a drawing was not only interesting, it was deeply informative.
Examples and Additional Resources
This framework provides examples of five different visual exercises that SecondMuse created for their research activities.
Each of these can be found in the appendix. Below are brief descriptions of each. Remember that these are starting points -
you can craft your own to address your goals and research questions.
Exercises for Users:
These exercises are best used to understand how a user interacts with communication technology, perceives their own
security threats, and to understand what elements of security and communication are important priorities for them. It is
recommended that they are used in sequential order.
Connectivity Exercise (Individual Activity, 5-10 minutes). This activity engages participants in understanding
how they think and behave regarding everyday communication. This exercise intentionally does not mention
security, privacy, or Internet freedom. By removing those elements from the picture, one can get a more holistic
and unbiased view about how an individual uses and values communication.
Visualize Your Communication Safety (Individual Activity, 5-10 minutes). This activity is best conducted following
the connectivity exercise. Now that users have visualized their own communication priorities, the next step is to
understand perceptions around security and privacy threats. The use of the word “safety” here is intentional: we
are choosing a word that is ideally less loaded than “privacy” or “security.” Please feel free to insert your own
language as needed for the group you are working with.
Design Your Ideal Communication Tool (Group Activity, 2-3 people per group, 20-30 minutes). Users form
groups, selected on their own or by a facilitator, and design a communication tool. The means of this design is
open for interpretation, but groups are highly encouraged to draw our visuals representing their tool on pieces
of paper. After the design session, each group will “pitch” their tool back to a larger audience. This “pitch” is
also open for interpretation but it is suggested that participants come up with a commercial-style presentation to
“sell” the tool to the audience, focusing on what makes it special and useful. This approach brings out a strong
emphasis on what can be interpreted as key features of the tool. It is strongly recommended that this visual
exercise is conducted after participating in the other two user-focused exercises. Inserting this exercise early
on can be challenging and overwhelming. By using the other exercises first, the participants will develop their
opinion on important elements for this exercise.
Exercises for Working with Technology Creators:
In addition to exercises to better understand users, there are two exercises to better understand developers. These can be
used in conjunction with the user-centric exercises to understand and check assumptions that are present in the development
of a tool. These exercises do not need to be used sequentially.
Map Your Development Process (Individual or Group Activity, 5-10 minutes). This exercise offers the participant
the opportunity to express how they approach the development of their tool. This tool could be a software tool, but
the exercise can also be modified to think of “tool” in the broader sense such as a training curriculum, a report,
or outreach materials.
Who Is Your User? (Individual Activity, 5-10 minutes). This exercise is meant to draw out insights as to how a
developer understands their users. These can reveal important design considerations, or preconceived notions
that may or may not be true.
7 F A C I L I T AT I N G G R O U P C O N V E N I N G S
Definition
A Group Convening is a multi-hour session where people spend time together discussing a curated set of topics and activities
to unlock needs through group dynamics.
Overview
Communication is social. Getting groups of people together in a similar or shared social network to talk about it is another
way to understand needs that lay the foundation of IFTs. During each gathering, which usually last between two and four
hours, participants are encouraged to tell stories to each other through designed activities. You listen for the language that
they use, the emotional quality of their experience and what they think is important. The same skills you use in an interview
around active listening and asking follow-up questions and seeking clarity on common terms like “usability”, “privacy”, and
“security” still apply in this method. Some of the activities you design are meant to help you understand how they see the
world working, associated with your research topics, others offer an opportunity for participants to co-design and create
solutions to the needs, threats and problems they have shared with you. The following outlines an approach to learning about
security, privacy and communication preferences, behaviors and motivations through designing a set of specific activities
for a group of people.
Why
The group convening methodology is designed to draw out both areas of consensus and the social tensions that emerge
when groups have conflicting points of view. In addition to spending time with multiple people to get a diversity of points of
view; this research method also gives you the opportunity to observe a community in action.
How
One way to think about a Group Convening is it is a series of activities with an interview interspersed. The number of
people included can range, but ideally you should have 4-8 people able to participate the entire time. Given that this involves
connecting with multiple people and needing to capturing the data and information shared, it is even more important to have
at least one other person that can facilitate this with you. If this convening requires a translator, it will on average take double
the time. Consider cutting back the number of participants and/or activities so you can keep everyone engaged and have
enough time to go through topics thoughtfully.
The following are the basic parts of a group convening. These can be determined based on your research questions and how
you want to use the time of the group:
1) Pre-Convening
Establish Location
Group convenings can be done in a range of settings, but generally speaking more comfortable settings have a positive effect.
Group convenings held in a comfortable living room of someone’s home, or a pleasant outdoor setting on a nice day are good
examples of this. Use what is available to you.
Interview Host
Your host is the person who is responsible for inviting others to the convening with you, and possibly hosting the convening
itself. You should talk to the host and help them have an understanding of the types of people you are looking for so they can
invite the guests that can help your the most. If you haven’t had a chance to interview the host before to understand who
they are and their connection to the guests they are inviting, set-up 30 minutes before the convening to do an interview (See
Conducting Interviews section for more details)
2) Group Convening
Welcome
Balance interviewing and shadowing. You want the participants to feel comfortable around you. Get to know them
and break the ice – be mindful of cultural norms -- say hi, ask them about their families, how they know the host,
and so forth. Make sure to establish rapport without disturbing the group dynamic. Before you begin, introduce
yourself and your team and give a brief overview of how they will be spending time with you. In the welcome also
inquire about privacy and security needs (See Conducting Interviews for more details).
Warm-Up Activity
■■ This is the first time the group is doing something together. They are getting used to each other and especially
you and your team.
■■ Warm-Up activities should be designed to have no right or wrong answer. Make that explicit. The intention is
to get participants warmed-up to telling stories about their personal experiences as well as to get comfortable
commenting on what others have shared.
■■ With that said have this activity be an opportunity to explain or share something that they are familiar with.
In the case of SecondMuse’s fieldwork in Dharamsala, we asked each participant to tell us about their mobile
device - how do you use it?, favorite apps, etc.
2-3 Interactive Activities

■■ More often than not these are activities that allow people to create either individually or in a small group or
set of pairs and then share with the larger group in the form of a debrief or in some cases a presentation.
■■ The activities and debrief length can vary, but on average, think about the entire time you have set-up with
the host and guests and budget time for your activities accordingly. In the example from Dharamsala, the
SecondMuse team facilitated 3 interactive exercises and used a team break-down of 1.5 hours to do all 3.
■■ Your role is to make sure people clearly understand the directions, have the materials they need to complete
them, and to facilitate conversations when the larger group comes back together
■■ For each of the activities generate 3-5 facilitation questions to help the group share what they were working
on. Some of these questions should be about specific parts of the activity while others should be ones that
reflect the main themes of the research.
■■ Please see Visual Exercises for more details on how to design some of the activities you can use in a gathering.

Special Note: Be prepared to adapt exercises as you get to know the audience better. You now have a plan, but you can
change the order of activities, skip activities, spend less or more time on activities, etc... Just communicate with your
co-facilitator(s) so they know.
Wrap-Up
This is the opportunity to revisit any interesting topics that came up over the time together and bring up areas
of interest that you may have missed. By this time, people are the most comfortable with you and each other so
feel free to ask those “tough” and specific questions. Also, use this time to ask them how this experience was for
them and if there are things that we didn’t discuss that would be important for you to know.
3) Post-Convening
Thank the host and have a ~15 minute wrap-up interview with them. Ask them how they thought the event went
and any other lingering questions you may have.
Example & Additional Resources

In Dharamsala the SecondMuse team hosted convenings in a home of a trusted couple in the Tibetan community. For one
of the convenings we had a total of 7 participants from a variety of backgrounds - including journalists and activists. The
gathering was designed to include a couple of large group discussions, exercises that paired participants together, and an
opportunity to explore an Internet Freedom Tool in its prototype form.
Keeping in mind the research goals and questions, along with the dynamic of the group, the SecondMuse team made
adjustments along the way to the Sample Agenda below, but were still able to do all of the activities. One of the exercises that
participants enjoyed the most was an opportunity to design their ideal communication tool and pitch it to each other. In small
groups, they drew their design, explained the
needs that it addressed and how other Tibetans
Sample Agenda:
would learn about it. There was also a Q&A
Welcome & Intros (30-45 min)
portion for other participants to ask questions
and make suggestions. ■■ Overview
■■ Warm-Up Questions
In some cases during the convenings we had
a translator and in others there was enough Activities & Exercises (1.5 hours)
proficiency and comfort in English that we could ■■ Connectivity Exercise
facilitate the gathering ourselves. If you are in
■■ Visualize Your Communication Safety
a situation where translation is needed, please
■■ Design Your Ideal Communication Tool
review the Privacy, Cultural Understanding, and
Translation section, and plan accordingly.
Tool Feedback Exercise (45 minutes)
A detailed agenda for this group convening which ■■ Overview of the Tibetan News Reader - see if
include instructions for conducting each part of it anyone has heard of it or has used it
is available in Appendix 6.1. ■■ Opportunity to download and start to use (break
participants into pairs or triads)
■■ Feedback session
Closing (.5 hours)
8 DEVELOPING PERSONAS
Definition
Personas represent a composite of users with common behaviors, attitudes and motivations who exhibit similar behavioral
patterns in their use of information and technology to achieve a goal.
Overview
Personas offer a promising approach to incorporating user voice into the development process. They are a way for you
to start seeing your user beyond their interactions with computers, servers, and mobile devices. The following provides
guidelines for how to create your own personas and some examples of personas that are used in the IFT space.
Why
Personas give us the opportunity to walk in the shoes of users and other influential stakeholders not only as they engage
with tools, but also to better understand how they live their lives. This activity will allow us to better understand their
communication, security and privacy needs by collecting and summarizing a group of people’s thinking in one place. The act
of creating and using personas is another way for us to build empathy and understanding of another person’s point of view;
thus improving the design and refinement process of development.
Creating a persona can be helpful once you have completed your research phases and want to understand the key insights,
motivations and needs of groups of people. In addition to helping with analysis, once personas are created, they can be used
to help with the continued design and development process, because they are a litmus and ground your development process
in what is actually happening to your users on the ground. Personas distill the things you’ve heard and learned and help you
answer the question “Now, what do I design for someone like you and others that are similar?”
How
Personas are typically 1-2 pages in length and include at least 1 representational image of the person and “facts” about that
person. Think about it like a baseball card or a brief character summary. You won’t need to put every detail about all of the
similar people you’ve spoken with, but you will need to highlight and summarize the most important information about this
group that will help in your design and understanding of that population. Remember that this “person” can be composite of
multiple people with the same ideas and needs, and any personal information can be anonymized or removed.
As part of this, you will need to identify the most important “fact” or categories that help you understand who this population
or group of people is. Here are some you can begin with that are relevant to the IFT space that were used in SecondMuse’s
Dharamsala research. As always with the Internet Freedom Needfinding framework, these are just starting points and you
can further develop them and shape them depending on your research questions, needs and focus:
SecondMuse developed a series of categories for personas created through their work with the Tibetan Exile Community
in Dharamsala. These categories were based on the goals and research questions established early on in the process. The
categories developed for other projects may be different depending on differing goals and research questions. Below many
of the categories below are examples of information that can be included. The full, detailed example is in Appendix 7.2. The
person in this example, Pema, is a composite of multiple individuals working as coordinators at nonprofits in Dharamsala.
■■ Name: This can be a pseudonym.

Pema.
■■ Occupation: Describe their occupation in detail, not just with a single descriptor.
Program Manager and Community Outreach Coordinator at Youth For Tibet, an international group whose
mission is...
■■ Background: Establish an understanding of this person’s background, particularly in relation to the work
they do or the topic at hand.
Pema, her aunt and little brother left Tibet when she was 10 years old. She has been living in Dharamsala ever
since...
■■ Motivations: Explain why does this person do what they do, in particular what motivates their work and
actions.
Pema and her colleagues as predominantly focused on “keeping the struggle alive” for Tibet to be free. She is
dedicated to…
■■ Challenges: Describe the challenges this person faces in their work and day-to-day life as it relates to the
topic at hand.
To communicate with the vast network of regional and local chapters.
To verify that the correct information is being sent to members and not altered by outsiders...
■■ Communications - Who, What, How?: Explain who this person communicates with, what are they
communicating and how do they conduct this communication.
Who: Colleagues, regional organization leads...
What: Protests and demonstrations by local groups, learnings from…
How: Social Media - Facebook, apps like Weibo...
■■ Goals: Express this person’s goals, particularly as they relate to the topic at hand.
Keep the Tibetan struggle alive in the eyes of youth, everyday people and...
■■ Definition of Security: Define how this person understands and expresses the meaning of security.
Even though Pema and her organization have “nothing to hide” and are nonviolent they know they are a target.
Security is...
■■ Key Technologies Used Regularly: List regularly used technologies this person uses, such as mobile
communication applications.
Gmail, Google Drive, Viber, phone, post, Facebook, KaoKao, Weibo...
■■ Threat Perception: Describe how this person thinks about and perceives the threats they face. This may
include both objectively validated threats and personal thoughts and feelings about threats - both provide
valuable information (but be sure to distinguish between the two).
They often have their website attacked through attachments that are sent via email saying it is coming from
someone at the Central Tibetan Administration or...
■■ Security Precautions: Explain how this person manages security concerns through both tools and
behaviors. Remember that “tools” can include techniques and actions that they have established on their
own.
After a training from Tibet Action, she and her team have started to use Gmail (before they used Yahoo Mail),
Google Docs and have developed a system that...
After completing the persona of Pema an image was used to represent her and the persona was included in the report
Understanding Internet Freedom: The Tibetan Exile Community.
Examples & Additional Resources

Personas can be presented in many ways. A number of example personas created based on the time SecondMuse spent with
the Tibetan Exile Community can be found in Understanding Internet Freedom: The Tibetan Exile Community.
9 D E S I G N I N G T H E A N A LY S I S P R O C E S S
Definition
Analysis is the opportunity to understand what you are experiencing in your research. It encompasses a series of activities
that can be done alone or in a group that allows you to think differently and empathetically about your users.
Overview
Making sense of what you are seeing and hearing from users and other influential stakeholders is the most important and
valuable part of the Needfinding process. There are a lot of ways to do this, but the following are a few activities that can
help you and your team translate user experiences into helpful guides to your tool development process. You can use all of
these or a few of these. The important thing is spending time thinking about the user experience. Have fun and be creative
coming-up with ways that can help you and your team understand users and the information you have gathered.
Why
Spending time asking “why”, looking for patterns in the data you’ve collected, and staying true to uncovering answers to your
Research Questions is a critical part of human-centered design. The analysis process gets you to the insights and learnings
that are potentially transformative for a community versus just one person. Instead of moving from observation (“I saw this”)
to solution (“I will make this”), dig deeper into what is going on in this situation and how this relates to other things you have
learned along the way. For example, just jumping from “I saw one person use Google Drive” to “all IFTs should be able to
interface with Google Drive” doesn’t capture all of the learning. Ask yourself “who”, “what”, “when”, “where” and “why” and
that will not only get to a deeper insight, but it will also help you prioritize what needs to be a part of your tool.
How
Analysis can happen anytime during your Needfinding process. The more frequently you do it the more you are able to make
changes and update the way you conduct research to hone in on the things that matter most. Similarly, understanding what
you are learning along the way allows you to start to test hypotheses in real-time with users and influential stakeholders
and helps you start to see how what you are learning can shape the tool design, implementation and follow-up with users.
Debriefing Research Visits

After every type of research visit - from Interview to a Group Convening - you and your team should spend some time talking
about what you learned, witnessed, and experienced as a whole. Here are some things to discuss that can help you with
your debrief session:
■■ Initial Impressions.
■■ Write down key take-aways - information you learned that struck you as particularly meaningful, interesting, or useful
to your work.
■■ Review basic facts about the participant(s).
■■ Share key stories about the participant(s)’ life and priorities.
■■ Discuss participant(s)’ social connections & roles in their community.
■■ Document definitions or points of view around key topics and terms; for example “security”, “privacy”, “threats”, and
“communication.”
■■ Share anything you found strange or interesting in general.
Write the top takeaways at the top of your notes that way you have the ability to quickly skim the top learning and go deeper at
another time. This process also makes it easier for others that may not have been on the site visit to go back and understand
what you have learned. Immediately after your visit spend at least 10-15 minutes capturing this information. You can always
come back and add more, but things are freshest right after a visit so you might as well start then.
Reviewing Research Notes, Video & Recordings

In general it is a best practice to review your notes (or any other way you captured your experience with users and
stakeholders) from the research visits; especially if you have a team and not everyone was able to be a part of the visits. Each
time you look at them you will see something different informed by what you are learning along the way.
Answering the Research Questions

You have spent time at the beginning of your Needfinding process identifying the key questions and topics you want to learn
more about (See Establishing Goals & Research Questions). This has informed your research process and recruiting of
participants. Go back through your notes, visual exercises and your own thoughts and musings. Use these to start answering
your Research Questions. Doing this activity will also let you know where you need more “data”. These answers can already
be incorporated in your design, implementation and user feedback navigation or prioritization process.
Capturing Top Stories

A great way to kick-off a deep dive into users is to step back and think about a couple (2-3) of stories of things that you saw,
read or experienced with users that you thought was unusual, insightful, and keep a running list. Those stories will help lay
the groundwork for the development of personas, updates to your funder and other developers interested in what you are
learning. If you are on a team, do this with your teammates as a way to “warm-up” before jumping into other tasks. This is
one way to help keep users in mind throughout your development process.
Identifying Needs
One of the most asked things of users is “what do you need?” or “what do you want?” This is often a very difficult thing for
users to articulate clearly. It is easy to say we need a developer to help with viruses when you get attacked on an ongoing
basis or more funding or time. It can be more challenging and more time consuming, however, to reach a point where users
can say I need a way to verify that what I am sending actually gets to the right person without any changes to the content.
That’s where you come in and the analysis process to identify needs; which are the things you can help your user with.
Needs are living and active and as a result can be expressed and/or felt by users in different ways. One way to think about
a need is as the thing that is missing. It is a requirement - psychological, physical or cultural - that is evident in an individual
and/or a group.
How do we start identifying “what’s missing?” Go back to the key stories and questions where users were expressing pain
points, successes they have overcome and roles in their job or their mission and use that as a way to start to identify their
needs. An important thing to remember is needs are verbs not nouns. That means that if you are talking to a news outlet
that is in a situation where the electricity is constantly going out their need isn’t “to have a generator”. Their need is to have
consistent access to a power source in order to complete work tasks, for example. If we just left it at “generator” we are
eliminating other solutions that could be developed like a battery or solar panels or a whole host of things. Once these verb-
based needs are identified you can start to brainstorm solutions for them; thus another way to generate more ideas that are
grounded in what is happening to our users.
Developing & Designing Based on Personas

Personas are a great way to help you and your team make sense of the different types of people and in particular users that
are a part of your tool ecosystem. The actual act of creating personas is an analysis process. See Developing Personas to
learn more about how to design and use personas. The use of personas can be a helpful design check.
Analyzing Visual Exercises

Having participants design and create in their own words and images is a powerful way to understand who they are -
motivations, priorities and needs. However; not everyone is articulate and even though you have had a conversation with
them about what they have created, including follow-up questions, there is still a need to spend time and look at what they
have made. Similar to the debrief process, spend time pulling out the top takeaways from their exercise and have that written
down in the notes document. Once you have gotten a couple of people who have done the exercise you can start to compare
and look for patterns - similarities and differences - across how someone approached, for example, the Connectivity Process
of the Tool Development Process.
Identifying & Understanding “Tools” Used by Users

This can include actual IFTs that were developed by yourself and others and “tools” that the users themselves designed and
are using. In addition to listing these in a central place the next step is determining when, where, how and why a user is
choosing this tool. By unlocking the scenarios of use, you will be able to gain a deeper understanding of motivations, needs
and challenges of tools. Things that people have cobbled together may not seem sophisticated or helpful at first, but they
tell an important story and analyzing them allows you to determine what design cues and principles may be helpful in your
own design. For example, when the SecondMuse team met with a large activist group with chapters all over the world, the
administrative body explained to us that they are often subjected to people sending viruses through attachments. If they
need to send each other an attachment they will use a group chat on Viber to notify everyone that an email is coming with
an attachment and that it is in fact from one of their colleagues and they can open it. This process of attachment verification
doesn’t mean design a group chat app, but points to the need for people to verify certain types of communication. This
learning opens the door to many different solutions that you and your team can come-up with. If you had stopped with writing
down Viber, you would have missed the connection to the development process. This is one of many learnings from just one
explanation of someone creating their own “tool”.
APPENDIX
This appendix contains example templates,
instructions and exercises for the framework
elements detailed in the previous section. It is best to
engage with these appendices by first reading through
the framework element you wish to utilize, and then examining
the associated appendix that is referenced there. Remember that
these examples have been created for specific research projects that
SecondMuse has conducted and you will need to appropriately contextualize
and adjust them for your work.
52
APPENDIX 1.1 - DHARAMSAL A, INDIA RESEARCH PL AN
This is the research plan that the SecondMuse team developed for
fieldwork in Dharamsala, India. This should be treated as an example.
Appendix 1.1 - Dharamsala,
The form and format can be adapted for your own purposes.
India Research Plan
■■ Goals & Outcomes

Goals & Outcomes
Why are we conducting this research? What do we want to get out of ■■ Research Questions
it specifically? What are the desired outcomes? ■■ Approach
■■ Activities
■■ To understand frames of meaning, personal experience, behaviors,
■■ Selection Criteria
priorities, and emotions as it relates to communication, use of
■■ Draft Schedule
tools and perceptions of security and privacy among the Tibetan
diaspora within Dharamsala (Empathy Trip) ■■ Contact and Travel Info
■■ To explore and test human-centered design practices/approaches
to uncover needs and their application to the development process
□□ Understand what developers can utilize to better understand
the needs of users in general.
□□ To test the effectiveness of our overall research process, so it can be refined and ultimately replicated elsewhere.
■■ To be able to speak to, document, share user experience with IFTs firsthand (build body of knowledge)
■■ Identify key needs that users have in Dharamsala, which can help others build better tools for this community.
Research Questions
Are there specific topics or questions that need to be answered with this research? This is a good place to list them. This
is typically a list of 5-10.
■■ What is “meaningful” communication?

□□ What are the most common use cases of communication technology in which security/privacy may be a
concern?
□□ What are the priorities for an individual when they are communicating?
□□ How do individuals in Dharamsala define privacy and security?
■■ What differences are there in needs and the uses of tools, based on spectrum of technical literacy?
□□ Also: based on your mission, your job, (other points on the spectrum - what are the differences in needs/uses of
tools based on these things)
■■ Do individuals utilize Internet Freedom tools? Why or why not?
■■ What are the security-related behaviors that individuals employ in their daily communication activities? How are these
reflected (or not reflected) in the technology they choose to use?
APPE N DI X 1.1 - D HA R A M SA L A , I N D I A R ES EA RCH PL A N 53

■■ What are the things a user considers when making a security-related decision online (even if they do not realize they
are making a security-related decision)?
□□ How might these considerations translate into more usable software?
■■ What are the most relevant pieces of info that would help a developer build a tool more effectively for people in
Dharamsala?
Meta Themes
As we interview and observe participants keep in mind these larger issues we are exploring.
■■ Draw out learnings that may be transferable to other communities of users.

■■ Understand how developers have interacted with users here in the past, and how that relates to what we have heard
from developers themselves on their end-user interactions.
■■ How might what we learn integrate into a developer’s development process?
Approach & Activities

How are we defining the research activities to get to the goals? This is an overview of the different types of research
activities, including # and type of participants, locations, etc. This may be primary research, secondary, etc.
■■ Interviews
■■ Intercepts
■■ Activity Shadows (watching people use the internet, phone, etc.)
□□ Shadow the accidental technologist at work AND the formal technologist
□□ Activists/Journalists/CTA
■■ Observations - witnessing day to day life, surroundings (Immersive Environments)
□□ internet cafes
□□ university
□□ office space
□□ events/meetings of activists and journalists
■■ Groups Exercises/Storytelling/Co-creation
□□ Intro
□□ Who: Journalists, Activists - may be we can see if the CTA could do this together
□□ Focused on Tools - how have your found, identified or used tech securely?
□□ Co-creating ideal communication support
□□ Discovery process of tool engagement - find out the info, learn and decide to use it (Storytelling prompt?)
□□ Debrief
■■ Visual Exercises
□□ Mapping - This is how I communicate and get my job done.
□□ Draw a representation/diagram of the security threats you face as an “Internet user”

□□ Draw the development process.
■■ Both by developers, and non-developers who may have a role in the development process.
Participant Goal: 25+ total participants.

■■ Interviews: 5+
■■ Intercepts: 15+ (tend to get more of these than interviews)
■■ Shadows: 2+
■■ Group Exercises: 2+
Selection Criteria
Criteria to consider for selecting research locations, participants, organizations, etc.
■■ Look for participants that fit into these roles:

□□ Central Tibetan Administration
□□ Journalists
□□ Activists
□□ Communicators
■■ May be part of another user type.
□□ General Public
□□ Local Tool Developers
□□ Accidental Technologist
■■ May be part of another user type
Team & Roles

Who’s going on the fieldwork, # of people in-field, etc. What are the roles in-field (i.e. leading, taking notes, video, etc.)
Katey, Roxann, and Mike will be in the field with support from our on the ground stringer, [Name Redacted]. The team will
alternate participating in activities with a general “two-on then one-off” rule, meaning each team member will get one
break for every two activities that they participate in. We will all meet as a team every morning for breakfast and debrief
as a team every evening during or after dinner. The team will alternate the roles of leading activities, taking notes, and
collecting additional documentaiton such as photos.
Draft Schedule
[sample section, sensitive information redacted]
WED March 19:

■■ Fieldwork Day #3
■■ Breakfast Meeting: 8:30am @ Moonpeak Espresso
■■ Morning [Organization Name Redacted]: 10 am

□□ Could be an hour-long meeting to ask some of the questions. Get to know what he does. How he is doing it.
Then potentially set up follow-up meetings.
□□ Smaller space but should be fine.
□□ May be some English translation issues.
□□ Shadow Opportunity
■■ Explain Shadow
□□ LEAD: Roxann
□□ NOTES: Katey
■■ Afternoon: 2:30 [Organization Name Redacted]
□□ [Redacted] org in the tibetan community not run by the gov’t. 2 or 3 of the staff are communicators - mostly
about information gathering on human rights issues in Tibet.
□□ Meeting with director; 6 to 7 staff (director speaks English well; 4 Tibetan staff; 2 to 3 western volunteers)
□□ LEAD: Katey
□□ NOTES: Roxann
■■ POST-Interviews: Recap Meeting & Learnings
THU March 20:

■■ Fieldwork Day #4
■■ 9:30 am: [Organization Name Redacted] Venue - [Location Redacted]
□□ LEAD: Mike
□□ Notes: Roxann
■■ 11 am [Organization Name Redacted] - the only Tibetan organization that [redacted].
□□ [individual roles redacted]
□□ [organizational summary redacted]
□□ Shadow Opportunity (Confirmed)
□□ Explain Shadow
□□ LEAD: Roxann
□□ NOTES: Katey
■■ 2pm- [Individual Name Redacted] - [Organization name Redacted] - Morning - Tentative -
□□ Does all of the tech/networking for [Organization Name Redacted].
□□ English not a problem.
□□ LEAD: Katey
□□ NOTES: Mike
Contact and Travel Info
PHONE CONTACT
Cell phone #s of people traveling together

Michael: 555-555-5555
Katey: 555-555-5555
Roxann: 555-555-5555
HOTEL INFO
Name, address, phone # of hotel
New Delhi:
[Hotel Information: Address, Dates, Contact Info]
Mike: March 12th - 15th
Roxann/Katey: March 14th - 15th
Dharamsala:
[Hotel Information: Address, Dates, Contact Info]
All: March 15th - 28th
FLIGHT INFO
Arrival/Departure and in between
Mike
[Flight Information]
Katey
Roxann

APPENDIX 1.2 - TORDEV (ICEL AND) RESEARCH PL AN
Overview
This is an empathy trip. We are trying to get a greater understanding
Appendix 1.2 - TorDev
of where developers are coming from and what’s important to them
(Iceland) Research Plan
as they engage in the world of Internet Freedom. Although we are
■■ Overview
particularly interested in user engagement, we must let the participant
“set the agenda” - talk about things they want to address in the order ■■ Goals & Outcomes
they would like. That in and of itself helps us learn more about them. ■■ Meta Themes
We can guide that process based on what we want to understand, ■■ Research Questions
but it is important that we seek to understand their point of view first
■■ Approach
before sharing our own views.
■■ Selection Criteria
Agenda & Event Info: ■■ Team & Roles

■■ https://blog.torproject.org/blog/join-us-tor-project-developers- ■■ Draft Schedule
meeting-reykjavik-iceland-february-17-21-2014
■■ Contact & Travel Info
■■ https://trac.torproject.org/projects/tor/wiki/org/
meetings/2014WinterDevMeeting
Goals & Outcomes

Why are we conducting this research? What do we want to get out of it specifically? What are the desired outcomes?
■■ To increase our understanding of the development process
■■ To understand Tor developers’ frames of meaning, personal experience, behaviors and emotions. As well as security,
privacy, community building, user engagement/role of users, what’s important to developers.
■■ To uncover assumptions about user’s role in the development process, the connection that developers have with users,
prioritization of security and privacy as it relates to designing for users
■■ To obtain feedback on framework deliverables from the perspective of what is both valuable and engaging to
developers.
Research Questions
Are there specific topics or questions that need to be answered with this research? This is a good place to list them. This
is typically a list of 5-10.
■■ What excites developers about the work we are doing? (language, facet, etc.)
■■ Understand the mindset of developers and their language
□□ Privacy
□□ Security
□□ Collaboration
APPE N DI X 1. 2 - TO R D EV ( I C EL A N D ) R ES EA RCH PL A N 58
■■ How do developers think about users?
□□ Do developers desire to engage more effectively with users?
□□ If so, where do they see their current form of engagement as lacking?
□□ What are their preconceived notions about how to do so?
■■ What does it mean to be a part of the Tor Community/IFT Community?
□□ What role does the user play within the Tor community?
■■ What can we create that will be additive as opposed to ‘just another thing?’
■■ Understand the tool development process
□□ How do developers approach the development process from the perspective of usability?
□□ What are the biggest challenges (pain points) in their development process?
Meta Themes
As we interview and observe participants keep in mind these larger issues we are exploring.
■■ Understand the mindset of developers and their language
□□ Privacy
□□ Security
□□ Collaboration
■■ Do developers desire to engage more effectively with users?
□□ If so, where do they see their current form of engagement as lacking?
□□ What are their preconceived notions about how to do so?
■■ What does it mean to be a part of the Tor Community/IFT Community?
□□ What role does the user play within the Tor community?
■■ Understand the tool development process
■■ How do developers approach the development process?
□□ What are the biggest challenges (pain points) in their development process?
Approach
How are we defining the research activities to get to the goals? This is an overview of the different types of research
activities, including # and type of participants, locations, etc. This may be primary research, secondary, etc.
We will use a combination of ethnography techniques for this deep dive in Tor’s development process and community. Each
of the techniques will work together to help us achieve the goals listed above.
■■ Intercepts: 10 to 20
■■ Long interviews: 5 to 7
■■ Drawing exercise: 5 to 7
□□ Possible Approach: Set up a place to allow individuals to come up and do these exercises on their own. Also
have post-its so people can comment and ask questions.
■■ Shadows/Observation:
□□ Tor Lessons Learned
□□ Journalist Training - Digital Safety Tools
□□ Hackathons
■■ February 20: Invitation Hack Day - 9:30 am start, Grand Hotel - members of our community are invited
to this day of hacking, working, conversations, presentations
□□ [Name Redacted] - ask and meet right away
□□ [Name Redacted] - ask
□□ [Name Redacted] & [Name Redacted] - ask
■■ February 21: Public Hack Day - 9:30 am start, Grand Hotel
■■ Informal conversations: TBD (as often as possible)
Selection Criteria
Criteria to consider for selecting research locations, participants, organizations, etc.
■■ Tor is one of the biggest in this space. Much like Dharamsala - robust community of user-types in one location - will
get a great selection of people involved in the space even though this is focused on Tor
Specific Individuals to connect with:
■■ [Name Redacted] suggested people in email ([Name Redacted] - ally/friend, [Name Redacted], find [Name Redacted],
[Name Redacted], [Name Redacted] of [Organization Redacted] is also there)
■■ [Name Redacted]
Team & Roles

Who’s going on the fieldwork, # of people in-field, etc. What are the roles in-field (i.e. leading, taking notes, video, etc.)
Katey & Roxann will be in the field with support from Mike. We plan to have a mid-way check-in to discuss how things are
going and what we need to update. We’ll do our best to stay together to conduct research and will take turns leading and
recording.
Draft Schedule
This is a general sense of how the research may go – and will be refined once we get on the ground and learn more about
the convening. This should include team meetings and debriefs, travel time, as well as participant research slots.
MON TUES WED THURS FRI
Planning & Finishing

ALL DAY TRAVEL
Materials
6:00 AM/
Arrive
6:45AM
Acclimate &
8:30am
Socialize
1) Invitation Hack
Day (Grand Hotel)
2) Journalist Public Hack Day
9:30am
Training - Digital (Grand Hotel)
Safety Tools (Grand
Hotel)
Meet with Karsten

~10:15am (Galleri Rm in Grand
Hotel)
? Team Check-In
Tor Lessons Learned

http://en.ru.is
(Reykjavik University
6:30pm
Room M101,
Menntavegur 1, 101
Reykjavick)
APPE NDI X 1. 2 - TO R D EV ( I C EL A N D ) R ES EA RCH PL A N 61

MATERIALS
■■ Recorders
■■ Markers
■■ Pens
■■ Interview Guides
■■ Staplers
■■ Paper
■■ Folders
■■ Tape
■■ Post-its - square and rectangular
■■ Blue Tape
Contact & Travel Info
PHONE CONTACT
Cell phone #s of people traveling together
Katey: 555-555-5555
Roxann: 555-555-5555
HOTEL INFO
Name, address, phone # of hotel
[Hotel Information]
FLIGHT INFO
Arrival/Departure and in between
Katey
Roxann
APPENDIX 2.1 - INTERNET FREEDOM & DHARAMSAL A L AND-
SCAPE ANALYSIS INTERVIEW GUIDE
This interview guide was created for interviews

conducted during our initial landscape phase of
Appendix 2.1 - Internet Freedom & Dharamsala
our research. This is a very general guide which
Landscape Analysis Interview Guide
was reduced in scope prior to each interview
■■ Introduction (5 mins)
to reflect that particular interviewee’s range of
expertise. It is rare for an interview to cover every ■■ Understand The Interviewee (5 mins)
question in the guide, so particularly important ■■ General Questions (15-20 mins)

questions and statements are bolded for visibility. ■■ Specific Questions (20-25 mins)
■■ Developers
Introduction (5 mins)
■■ Intermediaries (Funders/Advocacy/etc.)
Introduce interviewers.
■■ Location Selection (5 mins)
■■ Explain the Project ■■ Project Output (5 mins)
□□ SecondMuse is…
■■ Wrap-Up (5 mins)
□□ SecondMuse is a firm that focuses on
■■ Post-Call Action Items
innovation and collaboration to solve
complex challenges. Our work focuses
on bringing together diverse sets of
partners and perspectives to create
sustainable solutions for communities, cities, industries and beyond. We work with nonprofits, foundations, all
sizes of companies, as well as government agencies to leverage various stakeholders’ talents toward a unified
mission/solution. For this particular project, we received funding from OTF.
□□ Through this project, we seek to better understand the internet freedom tool development process and the
context under which users employ IFTs. The initial phase of research is focused on understanding the landscape
of the space and the tool development process. In March, we will be on the ground with users to better
understand the context under which they employ IFTs. We will use ethnographic methods such as shadowing,
interviewing and focus groups to better understand users’ daily lives. Based on our findings, we aim to
provide a framework for the ITF community, specifically developers, to more effectively and efficiently develop
contextually relevant tools in the future.
□□ We are talking to you because…/Goal of this work
□□ We will also be talking to….
■■ Researchers
■■ Developers
■■ Intermediaries (i.e. trainers and localization services)
APPE N DI X 2.1 - I N T ER N E T F R EED O M & D HA R A MSA L A L A NDSCA PE A NA LYSIS INTERVIEW GU ID E 63

■■ Funders
■■ Logistics
□□ The interview will take 60 minutes; we will be taking notes.
□□ In March, we aim to be on the ground working with users and upon completion of our study, we will submit
recommendations to OTF. Our results will be shared publicly.
□□ All of our findings will be shared in aggregate, and we will not attribute anything to you personally without first
clearing it with you.
■■ Before we get started, I just wanted to make sure:
□□ Are you comfortable with us recording this call/session for internal note-taking purposes?
□□ Do you have any questions before we get started?
Understand The Interviewee (5 mins)

■■ What do you do?
■■ Who do you work with?
■■ What does your organization do?
General Questions (15-20 mins)

The next set of questions are general questions we are asking of everyone to better understand the Internet Freedom Tool
landscape.
■■ Defining the Internet Freedom Tool Space (15-20 mins)
□□ How would you define the IFT/IFS? Who are the key participants and stakeholders in the space?
□□ In your opinion, what have been the biggest successes in this space? What have been the biggest challenges?
□□ What are the most pressing needs currently in the Internet Freedom Space?
□□ What are key trends and approaches you see happening currently in the Internet Freedom Space?
□□ Who are the key influencers?
□□ How would you describe the relationships among individuals or organizations in the space?
□□ What actors are missing?
□□ Who in this field, in your opinion, is doing the best job of building tools for users?
□□ Can you share an example of a failure in this space that resulted from inadequate understanding of user needs?
A success?
□□ When, if ever, are usability issues and security issues the same?
□□ Can you share an example?
■■ Your Org in the Internet Freedom Tool Space (10 mins)
□□ How does your organization/your role fit in the field? /How would you describe your relationship to others in the
field?
□□ What are your needs? (i.e., what’s keeping you up at night?)?
□□ Optional: Are you involved in any partnerships/collaborations? If so, what do they look like?

Specific Questions (20-25 mins)
Developers
■■ What does the software development process look like for your tool?
□□ How do you decide to implement a new feature?
■■ Who are your users?
□□ What do you know about the lifestyle/conditions/context of your user?
■■ How do you identify the needs of your end users?
■■ How do the needs of your end users affect the development process?
■■ How are threats identified, and how do they fit into the development process?
□□ Do you frame your work as a response to threat models?
□□ If so, how do you identify what those threat models are?
■■ How do the users of your tool find it and identify it as something they need?
■■ How would you define your top user communities, by size and priority?
■■ Are there ways you would like to engage/understand users of IFTs, but haven’t been able to? Can you explain?
■■ What are the biggest barriers between you (or your org) and users? Intermediary organizations?
■■ How did you decide to develop (or join developing) the tool(s) you work on?
■■ Who develops your tool?
□□ Do you have paid staff? Community of volunteer developers?
□□ How do they understand the needs of the users of your tool?
Intermediaries (Funders/Advocacy/etc.)
■■ FUNDERS ONLY: What are your funding priorities in the IFT space, and why?
■■ Can you describe the populations you work with.
□□ Follow-up: Who are the users you work with?
■■ Can you describe your relationship with users of IFTs?
■■ How do you figure out the needs of the populations you work with?
□□ What do you know about their lives?
□□ How do you gather this information?
□□ How are those needs communicated with developers? Used to influence your work?
□□ What are the biggest barriers between you and users?
■■ INTERMEDIARY ONLY: Do you validate the threats that users perceive? How so?
■■ Can you describe your relationship with developers?
□□ What are the biggest barriers between you and developers?
□□ What are some of the most effective developers you’ve interacted with and why? Least effective? Why?
■■ Optional: In conclusion, what are your biggest needs to accomplish your work in this space?

Location Selection (5 mins)
■■ ALL: Location Selection (5 mins for developers/10-15 minutes for Intermediaries/funders)
□□ Are there locations, groups, tools we should consider focusing on for this study? If so, who are they and why?
□□ We have been considering going to Dharmasala because we have existing relationships there. What do you think
of this?
□□ Do you have any relationship to users/organizations there or elsewhere?
Project Output (5 mins)
■■ Given what you know of our work so far, what would you like to see us produce that could be of value to you?
■■ What would success of our project look like to you?
■■ Who else do you think we need to talk to?
■■ Is there anything else you think we should read?
■■ Are there events/lectures/conferences happening over the next 6 months that you think we should know about and/or
be at?
Wrap-Up (5 mins)
■■ Is there anything else we have not discussed that might be important for us to know for our work?
■■ Thank interviewee for their time. (If they are awesome, leave the door open to come back to them.)
□□ Would it be alright if we came back to you if we have any more questions?
Post-Call Action Items

■■ Thank you email.
■■ Potential Follow-Ups
□□ Second Interviews
□□ Potential Follow-Up Survey
□□ Invitation for Feedback on our Work

APPENDIX 2.2 - DHARAMSAL A PRE-FIELDWORK INTERVIEW
GUIDE
This interview guide was created for interviews conducted

during the phase of our research that immediately
Appendix 2.2 - Dharamsala Pre-
preceded our fieldwork in Dharamsala, India. This is a very
Fieldwork Interview Guide
general guide which was reduced in scope prior to each
interview to reflect that particular interviewee’s range of
expertise. It is rare for an interview to cover every question ■■ Understand The Interviewee (5 mins)
in the guide, and before each interview questions were ■■ General Questions (15-20 mins)
prioritized for that particular interviewee. ■■ Specific Questions (20-25 mins)
■■ Cultural Content Experts Only

Introduction (5 mins)
■■ Technical Content Experts Only
■■ Human Rights & Journalism Content
■■ Explain the Project Experts Only
□□ SecondMuse is…
■■ Ethnography & Human-Centered
□□ SecondMuse is a firm that focuses on innovation
Design Content Experts Only
and collaboration to solve complex challenges.
Our work focuses on bringing together diverse ■■ On-The-Ground Work Questions (5-10
sets of partners and perspectives to create mins)

sustainable solutions for communities, cities, ■■ Project Output (5 mins)
industries and beyond. We work with nonprofits,
■■ Wrap-Up
foundations, all sizes of companies, as well
■■ Post-Call Action Items
as government agencies to leverage various
stakeholders’ talents toward a unified mission/
solution. For this particular project, we received
funding from OTF.
□□ Through this project, we seek to better understand the internet freedom tool development process and the
context under which users employ IFTs. The initial phase of research is focused on understanding the landscape
of the space and the tool development process. In March, we will be on the ground with users to better
understand the context under which they employ IFTs. We will use ethnographic methods such as shadowing,
interviewing and focus groups to better understand users’ daily lives. Based on our findings, we aim to
provide a framework for the ITF community, specifically developers, to more effectively and efficiently develop
contextually relevant tools in the future.
□□ We are talking to you because…/Goal of this work
□□ We will also be talking to the following types of experts with a focus on Dharamsala, Tibet or India...
APPE N DI X 2. 2 - D HA R A M SA L A PR E- F I EL DWO R K INTERVIEW GU ID E 67

■■ Cultural Content Experts
■■ Technical Content Experts
■■ Human Rights and Journalism Content Experts
■■ Experts in Ethnographic and Human-Centered Design Work.
■■ Logistics
□□ In the end of March, we aim to be on the ground working with users and upon completion of our study, we will
submit recommendations to OTF. Our results will be shared publicly.

■■ What do you do?
■■ Who do you work with?
■■ What does your organization do?

The next set of questions are general questions we are asking of everyone to better understand the Internet Freedom
Tool landscape. When we ask particularly broad or particularly specific questions, feel free to adjust the scope to fit your
experience and comfort.
■■ What is your experience related to Dharamsala?

■■ Based on your experience, what does privacy mean to people living in Dharamsala? How important is it to them?
■■ Based on your experience, where does privacy & security fit into your work priorities?
■■ Who are the people or organizations in Dharamsala in relation to the work you are doing, and why?
Specific Questions (20-25 mins)
Cultural Content Experts Only

■■ What are the most pressing sociopolitical issues to be aware of in Dharamsala?
■■ What are the dominant cultural frameworks in Dharamsala we should be aware of?
□□ What are any cultural taboos we should know/avoid to conduct research?
□□ Cultural Norms? - Food, Religion, Dress, Language
□□ What are the cultural norms for entering/exiting a home, gov’t building, and/or business?
□□ Are there going to be language barriers on the ground?

□□ What are gender dynamics in D?
□□ What is proper attire / in-field dress?
□□ What are greetings? Ways we can build repertoire?
■■ How do people most commonly use communication technology and/or the Internet in Dharamsala?
Technical Content Experts Only

■■ What Internet Freedom tools are being used actively on the ground in Dharamsala, or have been used actively in the
past?
■■ What are the most common use-cases for communication technology in Dharamsala?
■■ Are there documented cases of surveillance by China? What are they?
■■ What are potential adversaries in Dharamsala? (China? Phishers? Botnets?)
Human Rights & Journalism Content Experts Only

■■ Can you share with us what missions human rights organizations have had in Dharamsala?
□□ Do you or did you see a role for IFTs in these missions? Why or why not?
□□ What would you say are the biggest security/privacy concerns for this group? How would you describe the
security concerns for this group?
Ethnography & Human-Centered Design Content Experts Only

You may ask these in general, but if you are speaking to someone that has worked in Dharamsala or India, please ask them
to relate their answers to that specific context as well.
■■ What approaches and techniques have been helpful/most effective in capturing data that truly represents a person’s
experience? Which are not?
■■ What are the best ways to build rapport?
■■ What are things that we should be mindful of in conducting our research?
■■ What advice would you give us knowing the types of things we seek to learn?
■■ What are not to miss places, experiences we should have in D? India?
■■ What did you do to become acclimated to the culture and communication styles?
■■ What are must haves when conducting research in D? India?
■■ What are the most effective, non-intrusive recording/capturing tools?
□□ Advice on using them?
■■ What are some best practices for analysis in the field?
On-The-Ground Work Questions (5-10 mins)

■■ What types of potential or current users should we to talk to in Dharamsala?
■■ Are there specific individuals that we should talk to before we go or while we are there?
■■ We are considering spending some time in Delhi prior to going to Dharamsala. Do you have suggestions on

organizations or individuals we may want to meet with in Delhi?
Project Output (5 mins)

■■ Given what you know of our work so far, what would you like to see us produce that could be of value to you?
■■ What would success of our project look like to you?
■■ Who else do you think we need to talk to?
■■ Is there anything else you think we should read?
■■ Are there events/lectures/conferences happening over the next 6 months that you think we should know about and/or
be at?
Wrap-Up
□□ Would it be alright if we came back to you if we have any more questions?


APPENDIX 2.3 - DHARAMSAL A FIELDWORK INTERVIEW GUIDE
This interview guide was created for

interviews conducted in the field in
Appendix 2.3 - Dharamsala Fieldwork Interview Guide
Dharamsala, India. This is a very general
■■ Interviewer Notes
guide that was repurposed for a wide
range of organizations and individuals. It ■■ Introduction
was reduced in scope and modified prior □□ Pre-Interview Questions
to each interview to reflect that particular □□ Understand The Interviewee
interviewee’s range of expertise. It is rare ■■ General Questions

for an interview to cover every question ■■ Specific (By Topic)
in the guide, and before each interview □□ Communication and Information
questions were prioritized for that particular □□ Perceptions on Privacy / Security
interviewee. Some generally prioritized □□ Internet Freedom technology
questions are bolded here.
■■ Specific Questions (By Participant Group)
□□ Government Official
Interviewer Notes
□□ Journalist
■■ There are many questions which
□□ Activist
could easily drift away from our
□□ Communicator
research topic. This can be OK - but be
□□ Technologist / Hacker
aware and strike the right balance. If
■■ Wrap-Up
necessary, add qualifiers to questions
to keep them on target.
■■ We use the term “internet freedom”
throughout. This can be replaced by
other related terminology as appropriate. Experiment, and note what resonates. Possible terminology:
□□ communication technology
□□ surveillance / risk of surveillance
□□ communication security
□□ free, safe, and surveillance free communication
□□ free and open access to the internet
Introduction
■■ Introduce interviewers.
■■ Explain the Project
□□ SecondMuse is a firm that focuses on innovation and collaboration to solve complex challenges. Our work
focuses on bringing together diverse sets of partners and perspectives to create sustainable solutions for
communities, cities, industries and beyond. We work with nonprofits, foundations, all sizes of companies, as well
APPE N DI X 2.3 - D HA R A M SA L A F I EL DWO R K INTERVIEW G U ID E 71

as government agencies to leverage various stakeholders’ talents toward a unified mission/solution. For this
particular project, we received funding from Radio Free Asia.
□□ Through this project, we seek to better understand the internet freedom tool development process, the context
under which users employ IFTs, and build a framework to support developers in their efforts to understand and
address the needs of users.
□□ We are spending time in Dharamsala, India. We are spending time in Dharamsala, India to learn about the needs
of individuals as they related to privacy, security, and free access to the Internet. We will use ethnographic
methods such as shadowing, interviewing and focus groups to better understand daily lives of people living and
working here. Based on our findings, we aim to provide support to Radio Free Asia and the IFT community,
specifically developers, to more effectively and efficiently develop contextually relevant tools in the future.
□□ We are talking to you because you represent a member of [insert participant group]. We would like your personal
perspective on the questions below, which will help us fully understand the needs and challenges of developers
working on IFTs.
■■ Logistics
□□ We may share the raw notes from this interview with our funders at OTF, but not beyond that group. We will
remove your name from all notes if we do so.
Pre-Interview Questions
■■ Are there any security concerns we should be aware of related to this interview and documentation or conversations
relating to it?
■■ (If necessary) May we take photos or video? What restrictions should we be aware of?
■■ Are you comfortable with us recording this discussion for internal note-taking purposes?
■■ Do you have any questions before we get started?
Understand The Interviewee

■■ Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do.
General Questions
The next set of questions are general questions we are asking of everyone to better understand the Tibetan diaspora.
■■ Tell us about a day in your life. Can you walk us through what that is like?
■■ What is the mission of your organization, and what is your role in helping to achieve that mission?
■■ What are the most important topics of discussion within the Tibetan diaspora?
□□ What are the most important concerns of the Tibetan diaspora in general?

Specific (By Topic)
The next set of questions are questions specifically related to (Internet Freedom). We are asking these to better understand
what’s happening in the Tibetan diaspora privacy and security.
Communication and Information

■■ How do you communicate with people? What are you sharing?
□□ What are some barriers associated with this work related to communications
■■ What challenges do you regularly face in your day-to-day work?
■■ Can you walk us through how you would solve a problem in your organization?
■■ How do you learn about new technology such as apps, social media, phones?
□□ If they say a friend: Tell us about them, where do they learn about them? What kind of person are they? Why do
they know before you do?
■■ What activities occur day-to-day that are related to security and/or communication?
Perceptions on Privacy / Security

■■ * What security measures do you employ when performing your daily work?
■■ * Have security needs ever been a barrier to you performing your job? Are there times where they could have been a
barrier but you surpassed it? Tell us about it.
■■ What does safe communication on the Internet mean to you? To your organization/community?
■■ What is required to safely communicate with another person on the Internet?
■■ * Do you believe that you or others in your community (potential) targets of surveillance when communicating? Tell us
about it.
□□ Are there risks involved with this?
□□ Do you take measures to mitigate these risks?
□□ If so, who would be surveilling you? Why?
□□ What steps do you take to circumvent this? Why?
■■ * What security, privacy, censorship or surveillance threats are present in the Tibetan community?
□□ What about for you or your organization in particular?
■■ What are the concerns or worries on the front of your mind when using the Internet or other forms of communication?
□□ What are the biggest threats you face in internet freedom?
□□ How did you discover these worries/threats?
■■ Tell us a story about a challenge you or your organization faced related to concerns of privacy or security.
□□ FOR CONSIDERATION: Prompt that this should be related to technology / the internet / communications.
□□ How did you resolve or attempt to resolve this challenge?
□□ Did you utilize any tools or technology to help resolve this challenge? If so, what?
□□ Who was a part of the process to decide to use that tool?
■■ Is there a role for technology to help in mitigating privacy or security threats?

Internet Freedom Technology
■■ Do you use, or have you ever used, software that was intended to help manage your privacy or security online? Tell us
about it.
□□ What technology or tools have you used?
□□ What was your experience like when using them?
■■ Do you interact at all with software developers?
□□ If so, how? If not, why?
■■ What would your ideal relationship be with developers?
□□ What developers are the most responsive to you and others in your focus area?
□□ What does their responsiveness look like?
■■ If you had a developer in front of you right now, what is the one thing they should know that would make your life
easier?
■■ Do you use software to circumvent surveillance?
□□ If so, which software?
Specific Questions (By Participant Group)
Government Official
■■ What are the security threats you consider when performing your day-to-day activities?
■■ Has anyone ever tried to teach you how to use a Internet Freedom technology?
□□ If prompting is needed: such as PGP, Tor, YakChat, Redphone, Textsecure?
Journalist
■■ What are the technical capabilities of the sources you interact with?
□□ If prompting needed: How do they communicate on the Internet? What is their level of technical education?
■■ What is your communication process for posting and sharing what you are working on?
□□ Do you share/post publicly? Internally?
□□ If so, what value do you derive from it?
Activist
■■ Have you ever made a decision not to do something or communicate something because of a security risk? Tell us
about it.
■■ Tell us about a time you had to communicate with others about something sensitive related to your work.
□□ What went through your mind when deciding to communicate?
□□ What decisions did you make in the moment?
■■ Were any of them related to security or privacy concerns?

Communicator
■■ What does it mean to be a communicator?
■■ How might your needs related to privacy and security differ from others in Dharamsala or the greater Tibetan
community?
■■ What are your primary concerns related to privacy and security?
Technologist / Hacker
■■ Have you ever actively participated in the development of an Internet Freedom tool?
□□ What role have you taken in relating the needs of a community or individual to other developers of that tool?
■■ What is your software development process like?
□□ How do you decide to implement a new feature?
■■ Who are your users?
□□ What do you know about the lifestyle/conditions/context of your user?
□□ How do you identify the needs of your end users?
□□ How do the needs of your end users affect the development process?
□□ How do the users of your tool find it and identify it as something they need?
■■ Do you see a disconnect between users, developers, intermediaries?
□□ Does that create problems?
□□ What could help bridge that disconnect?
■■ Do you frame your work as a response to threat models?
□□ How are threats identified, and how do they fit into the development process?
■■ How did you decide to develop (or join developing) the tool(s) you work on?
■■ What from our work can add value to you?
Wrap-Up
■■ Are there any activities going on in the next two weeks that you feel might be particularly interesting for us to
observe?
■■ Given what you know about our work and our goals, what can we do or create that would be most valuable to you?
□□ (Non-developer) If developers could take away one thing from all of this to know and understand, what might it
be?
■■ Now that we’ve spoken with you, who else that is here should we talk to?
■■ May we contact you with more questions? If so, what is the best way to reach you?
■■ Thank interviewee for their time. (If they are awesome, leave the door open to come back to them.
■■ Follow-Up Option:
□□ Another Interview or Meeting

APPENDIX 2.4 - TORDEV (ICEL AND) INTERVIEW GUIDE
This interview guide was created for

interviews conducted at the Tor Developer
Appendix 2.3 - Dharamsala Fieldwork Interview Guide
Meeting in Reykjavik, Iceland. It was
modified in scope and modified prior to
each interview to reflect that particular ■■ Understand The Interviewee (5 mins)
interviewee’s range of expertise. It is rare ■■ General Questions (15-20 mins)

for an interview to cover every question ■■ Specific Questions (20 min)
in the guide, and before each interview □□ Development & User Engagement
questions were prioritized for that particular
□□ Security and Privacy
interviewee. Some generally prioritized
■■ Project Output
questions are bolded here.
■■ Wrap-Up
Introduction (5 mins) ■■ Post-Call Action Items
■■ Explain the Project

■■ SecondMuse is…
□□ SecondMuse is a firm that focuses on innovation and collaboration to solve complex challenges. Our work
focuses on bringing together diverse sets of partners and perspectives to create sustainable solutions for
communities, cities, industries and beyond. We work with nonprofits, foundations, all sizes of companies, as well
as government agencies to leverage various stakeholders’ talents toward a unified mission/solution. For this
particular project, we received funding from OTF.
□□ Through this project, we seek to better understand the internet freedom tool development process, the context
under which users employ IFTs, and build a framework to support developers in their efforts to understand and
address the needs of users.
□□ The initial phase of research is focused on understanding the landscape of the space and the tool development
process. We are spending time here in Iceland to get to know more developers and understand what their
priorities are when creating tools so we can best serve them. Then, in March, we will be on the ground with
users to better understand the context under which they employ IFTs. We will be spending time with users in
Dharamsala, India. These users are members of the Tibetan community, and their adversary in the security
context is the Chinese government which regularly spies on them. We chose this location for its clear threat
model (the adversary is the Chinese government), existing work related to Internet Freedom Tools that has
occurred there, and the interests of our funding organization Radio Free Asia. We will use ethnographic methods
such as shadowing, interviewing and focus groups to better understand users’ daily lives. Based on our findings,
we aim to provide a framework for the ITF community, specifically developers, to more effectively and efficiently
APPE N DI X 2.4 - TO R D EV ( I C EL A N D ) I N T ERVIEW GU ID E 76

develop contextually relevant tools in the future.
□□ We are talking to you because you represent the developer community. We would like your personal perspective
on the questions below, which will help us fully understand the needs and challenges of developers working on
IFTs.
■■ Logistics
□□ We may share the raw notes from this interview with our funders at OTF, but not beyond that group. We will
remove your name from all notes if we do so and simply identify you as a developer present at TorDev.

■■ Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do.
■■ What is your role within the Tor community?
■■ What is your role within the wider space of individuals who are involved in developing and deploying Internet Freedom
Tools?

The next set of questions are general questions we are asking of everyone to better understand the Internet Freedom Tool
landscape.
■■ Do you have any personal experience in Dharamsala, India or the Tibetan community in general? Tell us about it.
■■ Who in this field, in your opinion, is doing the best job of building tools for users? Why?
■■ When, if ever, are usability issues and security issues the same?
■■ Can you share an example?
Specific Questions (20 min)
Development & User Engagement

■■ Can you describe your development process to us? You can speak to your role as an individual developer as part of a
team, or the greater development process of a tool that you work on (Tor or something else).
□□ Alternative to this question - use 2nd visualization exercise: https://docs.google.com/a/secondmuse.com/
document/d/1sX5xhg_NkqX8es7tamj94kZMcILLpgRmPgxfS8HEhzE/edit?usp=drive_web
■■ Do you have any personal experience with engaging users directly? Tell us about it.
□□ Who were these users?

□□ What did you learn that you were not expecting?
□□ How did your perceptions of your user change, and how did that impact your development of tools?
□□ How have you engaged with users? Face-to-face? Social Media? Email?
■■ Describe a user of your tools to us. This can be a real person or a hypothetical person.
□□ (if prompting is needed) What are they like? What is their background? What are they trying to accomplish?
□□ How did you come up with this person?
■■ What are the biggest barriers between you (or your org) and users?
■■ How do the users of your tool find it and identify it as something they need?
■■ How do you measure usability of tools you develop?
Security and Privacy

■■ Have you ever had an instance in developing an IFT that required you to decide between implementing something that
would enhance usability and something that would enhance security? Tell us about it and how you handled it.
■■ What security and privacy practices and/or tools should we adopt when we are performing fieldwork in Dharamsala?
■■ How do you define privacy? Security?
Project Output
■■ If we took the results of our work and put them in a form that is most useful to you and your development process,
what form would that be?
□□ (if prompting is needed) Here are some other suggestions we have heard:
■■ A list of questions I should ask my users.
■■ Personas of different user types that I can design for.
■■ A report listing general findings on usability so I can incorporate broad themes.
■■ An organization I can reach out to in order to find intermediary groups that I can work with.
■■ ...
Wrap-Up
■■ Now that we’ve spoken with you, who else that is here should we talk to?
■■ May we contact you with more questions? If so, what is the best way to reach you?


APPENDIX 3.1 - TORDEV INTERCEPT INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
This is a brief guide for intercept interviews that occurred at the Tor
Developer Meeting. These questions were utilized for interviews
Appendix 3.1 - TorDev Interview
that occurred in the moment - chance meetings, introductions, etc.
Intercept Questions
This guide did not always need to be referenced directly and with
■■ Introduction
some practice it was possible for the general flow and key questions
could be recalled by the interviewer. ■■ Warmup
■■ Users
Introduction ■■ Usability and Development
In partnership with the Open Technology Fund (OTF), SecondMuse
Process
seeks to better understand the internet freedom tool development
■■ Low Priority
process, the context under which users employ Internet Freedom
Tools (IFTs), and support greater engagement and understanding of
user needs in the tool development process. Our objectives are to:
■■ Find more intersections for developers/users/funders to work together to make more robust tools
■■ Increase the ability of developers to assess the needs of users and integrate those needs into the development process
■■ Create a framework that can be used by developers to better understand the needs of users and design to address
those needs
Through this project, we seek to better understand the internet freedom tool development process, the context under which
users employ IFTs, and build a framework to support developers in their efforts to understand and address the needs of
users.
The initial phase of research is focused on understanding the landscape of the space and the tool development process. We
are spending time here in Iceland to get to know more developers and understand what their priorities are when creating
tools so we can best serve them. Then, in March, we will be on the ground with users to better understand the context
under which they employ IFTs. We will be spending time with users in Dharamsala, India. These users are members of
the Tibetan community, and their adversary in the security context is the Chinese government which regularly spies on
them. We chose this location for its clear threat model (the adversary is the Chinese government), existing work related to
Internet Freedom Tools that has occurred there, and the interests of our funding organization Radio Free Asia. We will use
ethnographic methods such as shadowing, interviewing and focus groups to better understand users’ daily lives. Based
on our findings, we aim to provide a framework for the ITF community, specifically developers, to more effectively and
efficiently develop contextually relevant tools in the future.
A little About SecondMuse

SecondMuse is a firm that focuses on innovation and collaboration to solve complex challenges. Our work focuses
APPE N DI X 3.1 - TO R D EV I N T ERC EP T I N T ERVIEW Q U ESTIO NS 79

on bringing together diverse sets of partners and perspectives to create sustainable solutions for communities, cities,
industries and beyond. We work with nonprofits, foundations, all sizes of companies, as well as government agencies to
leverage various stakeholders’ talents toward a unified mission/solution. For this particular project, we received funding
from OTF.
(Usability Definition: how someone interacts with software and how useful it is in their daily lives.)
Warmup
■■ Opening engagement question about how they got involved?
□□ Goal: establish rapport
□□ How did you get involved in this meeting today?
□□ Why are you here?
□□ What are you hoping to accomplish while here?
Users
■■ Think of a TOR user. Describe this person for us.
■■ How do you engage with your users?
□□ What interaction do you have with users?
□□ What interaction would you like to have with your users?
■■ What are the biggest barriers between you and your users?
□□ What do you need to close that barrier?
Usability and Development Process

■■ How does the user fit into your development process?
■■ How does the usability of a tool fit into your development process?
□□ When you think about your target users, what is the relationship between a tool being easy for them to navigate
and secure?
□□ Where do you see the tradeoffs between usability and security?
■■ When are those tradeoffs not worth it?
■■ When are they worth it?
□□ If someone came to you and said “here are a series of things you can do to increase the usability and usefulness
of your tool among end-users,” what might your first reaction be?
■■ How does the concept of usability fit into your definition of privacy and security?
Low Priority
■■ What do you see as the primary difference between security and privacy? How do you define them? How are they
related?
APPE N DI X 3.1 - TO R D EV I N T ERC EP T I N T ERVIEW Q U ESTIO NS 80

APPENDIX 3.2 - DHARAMSAL A INTERCEPT
INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
This is a brief guide for intercept interviews that occurred in

Dharamsala. This is a much shorter guide than the Tor Dev meeting
Appendix 3.2 - Dharamsala
as the opportunities for intercepts were not as high as the large
Intercept Interview Questions
number of pre-scheduled interviews. These questions were utilized
■■ Introduction
for interviews that occurred in the moment - chance meetings,
introductions, etc. This guide did not always need to be referenced ■■ Questions
directly and with some practice it was possible for the general flow
and key questions could be recalled by the interviewer.
Introduction
We are working in partnership with Radio Free Asia to better understand security, privacy, and communication technology
usage in Dharamsala. We would love to ask you a few questions.
Questions
■■ Warm-up Questions (Communication-Related, Contextual)
■■ Do you use WeChat?
□□ Are you concerned about anyone being able to see what you communicate on WeChat?
■■ If so, who? Why?
■■ Do you take any steps to mitigate this?
□□ Have you ever considered using an alternative to WeChat?
■■ If so, what? Why?
■■ Do you use it? Why or why not?
■■ How often do you think about privacy and/or security when using the Internet?
□□ Who or what comes to mind?
■■ Have you ever tried to use a new app or software that is meant to help you communicate with others and given up on
it? Why did you stop using it?
■■ Let’s say WeChat no longer existed and you wanted to choose a new application to chat with others. What are the
most important things that app must be able to do?
APPE N DI X 3. 2 - D HA R A M SA L A I N T ERC EP T INTERVIEW Q U ESTIO NS 81

APPENDIX 4.1 - DHARAMSAL A ACTIVIT Y SHADOW
This is an example guide for an activity shadow. This guide was

developed for activity shadows conducted during fieldwork in
Appendix 3.2 - Dharamsala
Dharamsala, India with the Tibetan Exile Community. This is
Activity Shadow
a generalized guide, meaning it was not created for a specific
■■ Logistical Information
organization or person. It also contains elements that could be
important for activity shadows in general but also may not be ■■ Introduction
applicable for other reasons, such as instructions for a videographer ■■ Pre-Shadow Questions
which were not utilized as the context of the situation suggested we ■■ Outline of Shadow Exercise
do not utilize that technique for both security and logistical reasons.
■■ Introductory Interview
■■ Activities
Logistical Information
Amount of Time: Half day

Materials: Video camera, camera, notebooks, 2M cards, and waiver form
Who: (draft list of people to consider shadowing)
■■ Journalists
■■ CTA Tech Department
■■ Other CTA Government Rep
■■ Student Activist
■■ Human Rights Activist
■■ Lobsang
■■ An everyday regular Tibetan
Introduction
We are spending the next few weeks in Dharamsala to understand people are keeping in touch with family, friends and
colleagues. It is our intention to understand how you use communication technology in your everyday life (both work and
home) in order to work with developers of secure communication tools to create tools that enable you to communicate
more easily and securely with those around you.
Why we are here?

Because we would like to better understand your communication habits and challenges. We will spend the next five hours
with you doing the following:
■■ Asking an initial set of questions about your communication habits and patterns.
■■ Shadowing Activities - spend time with you to understand your daily communicate and connect with people to fulfill
APPE N DI X 4 .1 - D HA R A M SA L A AC T I V I T Y S H A D OW 82
the mission of your organization.
■■ “Communication Tour” where we will have you show us how you use various forms of communication: internet
browsing, phone, text, chat, any anything else you use to accomplish your work and stay connected to your friends and
family.

from the Open Technology Fund at Radio Free Asia.
Why this exercise will ultimately be valuable to you.

We are talking to you because you represent a potential user of internet freedom tools (secure texting, chatting, emailing,
and anonymous web browsing).
Pre-Shadow Questions
■■ Are there any security concerns we should be aware of related to this interview and documentation or conversations
relating to it?
■■ Are you comfortable with us recording this discussion for internal note-taking purposes?
■■ Do you have any questions before we get started?
Outline of Shadow Exercise

What shadowing looks like:
■■ 2 to 3 researchers will visit the participant’s home/place of work to conduct an interview and spend time with them as
they engage in regular activities in and outside of the home.
■■ The entire interaction will last between 4 and 5 hours.
■■ One person will lead the interaction while another team member may record with video and a still camera, and the
third member will support by taking notes.
Our time with the participant will be roughly split into five main sections:
We’ll be flexible with the timing and order of the visit in order to accommodate for their schedule.
1. Introductory Interview (30 mins) – To build rapport while getting context.
2. Shadowing Activities (30 minutes to an 1 hr) – To see our participants in their element.
3. Follow-up with any questions about the activity that you
4. “Communication Tour” (1 hr) – To further learn about them and get a sense of their environment and what tools/
equipment they use
5. Follow-up questions about communication
6. Internal: Debrief and wrap-up (30 mins)
Debrief after the visit and as a larger team.

■■ Directly after completing the activity, the research team will go to a café/hotel to talk about what they saw while it’s
still fresh in everyone’s minds—and get some much needed food.
■■ It’s valuable to note what was initially interesting—or plain weird—and what becomes interesting later.
Tips
■■ For the lead – Facilitate in the beginning to get the participants used to explaining their answers, by asking follow-up
questions like “why” and “how.” At other times, try to fade into the background.
■■ For the videographer – Assemble the camera before entering the house to save time. Once you’re there, take the time
to set up the camera, lights, and sound right so that we can later have high-quality clips.
■■ For the note-taker - Try to time code questions and answers – e.g., using the following format: time code, question,
answer; group discussion underneath. Time Coding is important, as it helps us look things up later! Try to capture
everything in the participants’ words, and mark your own thoughts with brackets or underlining.
Introductory Interview
1. Can you tell us a bit about yourself? Who you are? What you do here?
2. When you hear the terms communication privacy and security, what do you think of?
3. How does what you described fit into your work? Daily life?
Activities
We are now going to start the shadow activity (If they need help identifying shadow activity, we can suggest the following:
1. Online communications (personal and/or professional)
2. Maintaining contact with family, friends, colleagues)
Shadow and follow-up:

1. What activity are we watching today?
2. Why did you decide to have us shadow you while doing this activity today?
For follow-up, ask any questions about communications behaviors and/or security behaviors.
Communications Tour (focusing more on the object than the behavior)
Ask how they use and who they are communicating with via:
■■ phone
■■ computer
■■ in-person
■■ analog (notebooks, etc.)
Wrap-up
■■ Thank them, ask if they have any questions, etc.
86
APPENDIX 5.1 - DHARAMSAL A FIELDWORK VISUAL EXERCISES
This appendix contains three visual exercises

used throughout the research process for
Appendix 5.1 - Visual Exercises
working with users of Internet Freedom
Tools. These are text-only descriptions of
the exercises that include instructions for ■■ Introduction
the facilitator such as questions to ask of the ■■ Exercise #1: Connectivity Exercise:
participants. Example worksheets are also ■■ Exercise #2: Visualize Your Communication Safety
included in this appendix, with instructions
■■ Exercise #3: Map The Software Development
intended for the participants themselves. Note
Process
that Appendix 5.2 has two additional exercises
intended for working with developers of
Internet Freedom Tools.
Amount of Time: 20-25 min per exercise
Materials: Exercise Template(s), pens, and colored thin markers
Introduction
We are spending the next few weeks in Dharamsala to understand people are keeping in touch with family, friends and
colleagues. It is our intention to understand how you use communication technology in your everyday life (both work and
home) in order to work with developers of secure communication tools to create tools that enable you to communicate
more easily and securely with those around you.

from OTF.

We are talking to you because you represent potential users. We would like your personal perspective on the questions
below, which will help us fully understand the needs and challenges you face in communication.
■■ Want to understand what matters to you in your communication so that software is developed that works for you
■■ Developers of these software tools have a better understanding of who you are and your needs
APPE N DI X 5 .1 - D HA R A M SA L A F I EL DWO R K VISUA L EXERCISES 87

■■ Sharing your ideas visually will help us share your point of view
■■ Visualization allows us to understand in a different way - another data collection method
■■ Want to share with others - visualizations are some of the most effective ways
Exercise #1: Connectivity Exercise:

In the next 5-10 mins please (draw a picture, diagram, write out the following) complete the following task:
Who, what, how, do you stay in touch with family, friends, and colleagues? We are interested in learning more about how
you and/or your organization communicates and shares ideas and specifically what do you use to do it. Please tell us more
about how you communicate by drawing and answering the following questions in 2 scenarios - Professional & Personal:
■■ Who are you communicating with?
■■ What type of information are you communicating?
■■ What access to communication technology do you have?/What tools are you using?
■■ Mobile, Text, Computer, Type of software, In-person, Paper, etc...?
■■ What’s the result of your communication?
We’ll come back together and discuss what you’ve created for 10-15 mins. We are going to cover a wide set of topics in
the conversation. In some cases we’ll be asking what appears to be more basic question. We’ll do this so that, instead of
making assumptions, we get your perspectives and your definitions in your own words.
Thank You!
These are some follow-up questions we can ask:
■■ How do you know if the information has gotten to the correct person?
■■ Who do you turn to to help you when something breaks down and/or becomes a challenge?
■■ Can you tell us the differences and/or similarities between “professional” and “personal”
communication?
■■ When and why do you use X (reference one that they have mentioned)communication tool?
■■ What are challenges/barriers in this process?

Exercise #1: Connectivity Exercise

Exercise #2: Visualize Your Communication Safety
In the next 5-10 mins please complete the following task:
How do you keep your communication safe/secure? We are interested in learning more about how you and/or your
organization deals with challenges to your mission and risks to safe and secure communication. Please tell us more about
what difficulties you and/or your organization face and how you address them by answering the following:
■■ What is the risk, threat, challenge, difficulty? (What do you worry about?)
□□ What is the origin of the risk/threat?
□□ When does it happen?
□□ What is the frequency of this risk/threat?
■■ What are you trying to accomplish that is made difficult by the risk/threat?
■■ Who is involved?
■■ How do you currently deal with this situation?
□□ Who do you turn to for help?
Thank You!
■■ What do you do to feel safe?
■■ What are you currently using to protect against surveillance?
■■ Does communication technology play a role in addressing and/or causing the risk/ threat?
■■ What do you wish was in place to help you and/or your organization communicate securely/with
confidence/minimize risk?
If the person is comfortable we can ask if they wouldn’t mind being photographed... At the end we’ll
put together a document of all of them.

Exercise #2: Visualize Your Communication Safety

Exercise #3: Design Your Ideal Communication Tool
Spend the next 15-20 minutes designing your ideal secure communication tool(s). In your design please include the
following:
■■ Who uses it, when, why
■■ What threat, challenge or safety concerns it is addressing
■■ Where someone can access this tool (store, online, from friend, etc...)?
■■ How people will learn about the tool?
Make an Ad (print or commercial).

We want as many people as possible to know about your new tool(s). Create a print or commercial ad to spread the word.
We’ll come back together to share them with the larger group. Some things to keep in mind:
■■ What is the need your tool is addressing
■■ What is the “selling point” of the tool?
■■ Who would be a “spokesperson” for this tool?


APPENDIX 5.2 - TORDEV (ICEL AND) FIELDWORK
VISUAL EXERCISES
This appendix contains three visual exercises used throughout

the research process for working with users of Internet Freedom
Appendix 5.2 - TorDev
Tools. These are text-only descriptions of the exercises that include
Fieldwork Visual Exercises
instructions for the facilitator such as questions to ask of the
participants. Example worksheets are also included in this appendix,
with instructions intended for the participants themselves. Note that ■■ Introduction
Appendix 5.2 has two additional exercises intended for working with ■■ Exercise #1: “Visualize
developers of Internet Freedom Tools. Your User” Exercise:
■■ Exercise #2: “Map Your

Development Process”
Amount of Time: 20-25 min per exercise
Materials: Exercise Template(s), pens, and colored thin markers
Introduction
In partnership with the Open Technology Fund (OTF), SecondMuse seeks to better understand the internet freedom
tool development process, the context under which users employ Internet Freedom Tools (IFTs), and support greater
engagement and understanding of user needs in the tool development process. We are spending time here in Iceland to get
to know more developers and understand what their priorities are when creating tools so we can best serve them. Then,
in March, we will be on the ground with users to better understand the context under which they employ IFTs. We will be
spending time with users in Dharamsala, India. These users are members of the Tibetan community, and their adversary in
the security context is the Chinese government which regularly spies on them.

from OTF.
APPE N DI X 5 . 2 - TO R D EV ( I C EL A N D ) F I EL DWO R K VISUA L EXERCISES 94

We are talking to you because you represent the developer community. We would like your personal perspective on the
questions below, which will help us fully understand the needs and challenges of developers working on IFTs.
■■ Lots of people want to tell you how to do your job better, we aren’t those people. Sharing your ideas visually will help
us share your point of view
■■ Visualization allows us to understand in a different way - another data collection method
■■ Want to share with others - visualizations are some of the most effective ways

Exercise #1: “Visualize Your User” Exercise:
We are interested in learning more about the users of your tool. Please tell us more about your user through drawing and
answering the following questions:
■■ Who is this person?
□□ What do they care about?
□□ What are their responsibilities?
□□ Where do they work, live, family structure?
□□ What access to communication technology does this user have?

■■ When do they use your tool(s)?
■■ Why do they use your tool(s)?
Thank You!
■■ If you could ask them anything, what would it be?

■■ What part of your development process does the user participate in?
■■ What additional parts of the development process would it be useful to have user participation?
■■ Is this your ideal user? Who’s your ideal user? What would make this your ideal user?
■■ Is there anyone else here we should have do this exercise?
If the person is comfortable we can ask if they wouldn’t mind being photographed holding their User
and/or partially photographed doing the exercise. Ask participant if they would be ok with us sharing/
showing. At the end we’ll put together a document of all of them.
Note: If you have more than one user feel free to grab another sheet of paper to represent them.

Exercise #1: “Visualize Your User” Exercise

Exercise #2: “Map Your Development Process”
We are interested in learning more about your tool development process. How do you and/or your team set-out to design
and release a tool? Please tell us more about your process through drawing/mapping it and answering the following
questions:
■■ Where does the idea to create a new tool come from?

■■ What’s the “workplan” or process from start to finish?
□□ Who is involved?
■■ What does feedback look like?
■■ What happens after launch?
□□ How do you maintain and improve the tool?
Thank You!
■■ What role do users play in your process?/ Where do they fit?

■■ What’s something that you would like to improve in your process?
■■ Complete the following sentence: “My life would be easier if....”
■■ What makes a great developer?
■■ Is there anyone else here we should have do this exercise?
If the person is comfortable we can ask if they wouldn’t mind being photographed holding their User
and/or partially photographed doing the exercise. At the end we’ll put together a document of all of
them.

Exercise #2: “Map Your Development Process”

100
APPENDIX 6.1 - DHARAMSAL A FIELDWORK GROUP CONVENING
This is an example guide for a group convening. This

guide was developed for a series of group convenings
Appendix 6.1 - Dharamsala Fieldwork Group
that were conducted during fieldwork in Dharamsala,
Convening
India with the Tibetan Exile Community. This is a
generalized guide, meaning it was not created for a
specific set of people, but it was created within the □□ Design a Communication Tool
context of that research effort. □□ Who uses it, when, why?
□□ What challenge or safety threat it is

addressing?
□□ Where someone can access this tool

Amount of Time: 3-4 hours
Total: 2-3 sessions over the course of fieldwork (store, online, from friend, etc...)?
Materials: Activity sheets/cards, Guardian project □□ How people will learn about the tool?
phones/apps, capturing devices, notebooks, paper,
pens/markers, 2M cards
Who:
■■ Journalists
■■ Student & Human Rights Activist
■■ Lobsang and friends
Why we are here?

We are bringing you all together, because we want to better understand how communication tools (phone, computer, voice,
paper etc) and internet security tools (secure text, chat, email and anonymous web browsing) fit into your life and your
work. It is our intention to understand how you use communication technology in order to support developers of secure
communication tools to create tools that enable you to communicate more easily and securely with those around you.
We will spend the next 3-4 hours with you doing the following:
■■ Seeking to better understand your communication habits and patterns
■■ Discussing communication and your mission through a series of exercises
■■ Exploring a secure communication application and getting feedback
APPE N DI X 6 .1 - D HA R A M SA L A F I EL DWO R K GRO UP CO NVENING 101

Flow of Activities
Overall Lead: Roxann

Intros (30-45 min) - Roxann
■■ Warm-Up Questions
Activities/Exercises (1.5 hours) -
■■ Connectivity Exercise - Katey
■■ Visualize Your Communication Safety - Katey
■■ Design Your Ideal Communication Tool - Roxann

Guardian Project Testing Exercise (45 minutes) - Mike
■■ Overview of the YakReader/Tibetan News Reader - see if anyone has heard of it or has used it
■■ Opportunity to download and start to use (break participants into pairs or triads)
■■ Feedback session
Closing (.5 hours) - Roxann
Welcome
During the welcome, balance interviewing and shadowing. On one hand, we want the participants to feel comfortable
around us. Get to know them and break the ice – say hi, ask them about their families, how they know the host, and so
forth. Make sure to establish rapport without disturbing the group dynamic.
Introduce facilitators/interviewers & the project.
Thanks for getting together with us today. We have invited you because we want to better understand how communication
and internet tools (text, chat, email, social media and anonymous web browsing) fit into your life and the work that you do.
It is our intention to understand how you use communication technology in your everyday life (both at work and at home)
in order to support developers to create tools that enable you to communicate more easily and securely with those around
you.
We will spend the next 3-4 hours with you doing the following:
Seeking to better understand your communication habits and patterns
Discussing communication and your mission through a series of exercises
Exploring a secure communication application and getting feedback
When we’ve finished the activities, we can talk more and answer questions.

■■ Logistics/Privacy Check-In
□□ Are there any security concerns we should be aware of related to the next few hours and any conversations
related to it?
□□ Are you comfortable with us recording portions of our discussions for internal note-taking purposes?
□□ Is there anything you’d like to know before we get started?
■■ Introductions
□□ Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do, and the technology invention that most changed your life.
(Have everyone in the group introduce themselves)
□□ How do you all know each other?
□□ Warm-Up: Have each person share what mobile device they have and briefly how they use it.
Communication & Security Activities (30 minutes each)
1. Connectivity Exercise
Types of Technology Used
■■ What are the communication tools/formats you know people are using here? In Tibet?
□□ What is most popular? (text, voice, email, in-person, etc.)
■■ Are people using Twitter in exile and/or in Tibet?
■■ What is the usage model of Twitter in Tibet and in exile?
■■ Are people using proxies to browse the internet anonymously?
□□ If so, which proxies are people using?
2. Visualize Your Communication Safety

Threat Models (use threat wire frame)
■■ What do you see as the threat model in Tibet?
□□ What do people want to protect themselves from?
□□ What information is sensitive to share and/or receive
■■ What is the threat model you face?
□□ What do you want to protect yourself from?
■■ What are the use cases for panic (wiping all of your personal info from the app, or the entire app itself in a single tap)?
3. Design Your Ideal Communication Tool

Based on what topics come-up in the previous 2 exercises have participants design a new communication tool that would
solve their needs.
■■ Design a Communication Tool
Divide the participants into pairs/triads (depending how many people come) and have them design a new
communication tool. They must tell us the following:
□□ Who uses it, when, why?
□□ What challenge or safety threat it is addressing?
□□ Where someone can access this tool (store, online, from friend, etc...)?
□□ How people will learn about the tool?
■■ Make an Ad (print or commercial).
We want as many people to know about your new tool. Create a print or commercial ad to spread the word. We’ll
come back together to share them with the larger group. Some things to keep in mind:
□□ How would you brand this tool?
□□ What existing brands are like this tool?
□□ What is the “selling point” of the tool?
□□ Who would you select to serve as a spokesperson for the tool and why?
Materials: paper, pens/markers, encourage people to use their own devices
Guardian Project YakReader Exploration
■■ News Discussion (10 min)
□□ How do you hear about news?
□□ What are you interested in reading about and knowing on a daily basis?
□□ What are common and/or good sources of news (including cultural, world news, technology, lifestyle, etc)?
■■ Overview of the YakReader (5 min)
This will be a brief intro to the app. Let’s see if anyone has heard of it or has used it. We can also use this time as
a warm-up by asking participants about the news they consume currently and how they do it.

■■ Download & Use Cases (30 min)
Supplies: 2 android phones (Lobsang), 3 very simple/non-internet phones
2) Exploring (Intended) Use Cases (15 min)

(working in pairs)
We would like for you all to try YakReader in the following ways. Let everyone go through all three uses cases at the
same time.
■■ Reading the news
■■ Share a story or a feed
■■ Using the panic mode/button
Please Note: Watch for people’s reactions to getting news on their phone. Are there mentions of similar websites/apps
providing these services?
3) Follow-Up Questions (15 min)

(Depending on the size of the group you have everyone respond or only ask a few people before moving on to the next
Use Case.
Overall impressions:
■■ How was this experience for you?
■■ Do you see yourself using YakReader? Why or why not?
Specific Features
Reading News
□□ When do you see yourself using this feature & why?
□□ When do you think other people would use this feature?
□□ What did you like?
□□ What was difficult?
□□ What was intuitive / unintuitive?
Sharing Stories/News/Feeds
□□ When do you see yourself using this feature & why?

Panic Button:
□□ When do you see yourself using the panic button & why?
□□ Are you confident this will help protect you?
□□ Was it easy to use it?
□□ Is this important and useful to you?
■■ Feedback Session
We’ll use this time to debrief specifics that came up and ask the following:
Questions
General News Perceptions
■■ How do people hear about news?
■■ How do people define news for themselves (personal feed on weibo vs. world news from the newspaper)? What are
they interested in reading about and knowing on a daily basis?
■■ What are common and/or good sources of news (including cultural, world news, technology, lifestyle, etc)?
■■ What is the common mental model of receiving information from the internet?
■■ Compile a list of blogs and websites that people read for news (here and Tibet).
Types of Technology Used
■■ What are the communication tools/formats you know people are using here? In Tibet?
□□ What is most popular? (text, voice, email, in-person, etc.)
■■ Are people using Twitter in exile and/or in Tibet?
■■ What is the usage model of Twitter in Tibet and in exile?
■■ Are people using proxies to browse the internet anonymously?
□□ If so, which proxies are people using?

Threat Models (use threat wire frame)
■■ What do you see as the threat model in Tibet?
□□ What do people want to protect themselves from?
■■ What is the threat model you face?
□□ What do you want to protect yourself from?
■■ What are the use cases for panic (wiping all of your personal info from the app, or the entire app itself in a single tap)?
Branding
■■ Which brands do people have a strong emotional connection to?
(Include an image or link to their logo, ads and other samples of messaging)
■■ How do people describe the qualities of that brand in 3-5 words?

SECONDMUSE / secondmuse.com
OPEN TECHNOLOGY FUND / opentechfund.org
RADIO FREE ASIA / rfa.org
This is the Internet Freedom Needfinding Framework v1.0,

published on September 1st, 2014.
108

Needfinding Framework Internet Freedom PDF

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Needfinding Framework Internet Freedom PDF

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

A NEEDFINDING

Michael, Katey, Roxann and SecondMuse

5 How to Use This Framework

8 Using this Framework: A Guide

13 Who Uses This Framework?

15 Funding Your Needfinding Work

17 Privacy, Cultural Understanding, and Translation Considerations

19 Guidelines for Engaging with Participants

24 Establishing Goals and Research Questions

26 Developing a Research Plan

41 Facilitating Group Convenings

48 Designing the Analysis Process

53 Appendix 1.1 - Dharamsala, India Research Plan

58 Appendix 1.2 - TorDev (Iceland) Research Plan

67 Appendix 2.2 - Dharamsala Pre-Fieldwork Interview Guide

71 Appendix 2.3 - Dharamsala Fieldwork Interview Guide

76 Appendix 2.4 - TorDev (Iceland) Interview Guide

79 Appendix 3.1 - TorDev Intercept Interview Questions

81 Appendix 3.2 - Dharamsala Intercept Interview Questions

82 Appendix 4.1 - Dharamsala Activity Shadow

87 Appendix 5.1 - Dharamsala Fieldwork Visual Exercises

94 Appendix 5.2 - TorDev (Iceland) Fieldwork Visual Exercises

101 Appendix 6.1 - Dharamsala Fieldwork Group Convening

■■ Developing a Research Plan: How to design your user engagement process

1. Definition - a description of the activity and methodology

I NT RO TO TH E I N T ER N E T F R EED O M N EED F IND ING FR A MEWO R K 4

This framework is organized in a logical order for a

Intercept Interviews are designed to increase understanding and dialogue

Spending time in the natural environment of your subject to observe their

A visual exercise is an activity that engages the participant in physically drawing

A Group Convening is a multi-hour session where people from a shared social

Personas represent a composite of users with common behaviors, attitudes and

Analysis is the opportunity to understand what you are experiencing in your

LIGHT TOUCH ENGAGEMENT

Estimated Time Needed: plan and interview guide

engagement. You can expect approximately 5 days of planning interviews as needed.

The elements of a standard engagement should be scaled to support

Oftentimes a translator will be performing other roles

Empathy Curve, Stanford d.school. time

2. Avoid binary questions.

4. Pay attention to nonverbal cues.

5. Be patient: trust your question and wait.

7. Ask questions neutrally, one at a time.

8. Connect and coordinate with your teammates.

9. Capture it all with notes and recordings, if appropriate.

1. What Else? - End your debrief by asking this open-ended question.

The remainder of this framework contains descriptions, motivations, and

Each element is also associated with one or more engagement types, as

■■ Why are we conducting this research?

Establishing Research Questions

2). During the Interview

3). After the Interview

Example and Additional Resources

3). After the Shadow

weird. 2. Shadow Activity (30 minutes to an hour)

The complete shadow activity guide that

■■ Who are you communicating with?

Examples and Additional Resources

Exercises for Users:

Exercises for Working with Technology Creators:

2-3 Interactive Activities

Example & Additional Resources