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Designing for Cultural Resonance: Helping KRUSH Turn Asian Identity into Meaningful Connection

Timeline

March 2026 - May 2026

Role

Project Manager
User Researcher

Responsibilities

Interface with Client
Project Executing & Monitoring
Usability Research
Design Solutions Propose
Design Solution Mockup
Usability Report
Final Deliverable Lead

Disciplines

Social Science Research
Usability Research
User Experience Design
B2C Design
Social Network UX

Tools

Figma
Figjam
Google Doc
Private Panel

Methods

Competitor Analysis
User Interview
Persona
Moderate User Research
Usability Test
Prototyping

Teammate

Chloe Dahan

(Research & Strategy Lead)

Yu-Ting (Mandy) Chiang

(Content & Design Lead)

Advisor

Prof. Sam Raddatz

Associated with

KRUSH / Curelation, Co.

Center of Digital Experience
at Pratt Institute

Project Highlight

Overview

Culture Should Not Feel Like a Checkbox

KRUSH is a dating and social community platform designed for global Asians and people who appreciate Asian culture. Unlike mainstream dating apps that treat identity as a filter, KRUSH positions cultural heritage as the foundation for meaningful connection.

Our challenge was to evaluate whether that promise was actually coming through in the live app experience.

Outcome Preview

From Cultural Labels to Cultural Resonance

Through six moderated user testing sessions, we identified three product opportunities:

Bridge the gap between matching and starting a conversation.

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Move from static identity labels to deeper cultural behaviors and values

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Differentiate Discover and Global into two clear discovery modes

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These recommendations helped KRUSH understand where its cultural promise was landing, where it was breaking, and how the app could better support high-intent users seeking meaningful relationships.

Design Artifact

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Read the Usability Report

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View Design Recommendations

What My Collaborators Say

Teammate

Yu-Ting (Mandy) Chang

UX Consultant @ DX Center

Amy (Yung-Wei) is a super supportive teammate both in terms of our workload and our morale. She is incredibly organized, has a clear vision for the project, and keeps the progress on track perfectly. At the same time, she always checks in on everyone to make sure we are all on the same page. I truly appreciate having her as a teammate, and I’ve learned so much from her throughout this process.

Teammate

Chloe Dahan

Product Design Intern @ MoMA

Working with Amy (Yung-Wei) throughout the semester has been such a wonderful experience. Outside of the the organization she brings to the team, Amy is always there to contribute her thoughts and/or work through a problem together, which I truly appreciate in a teammate. It's always great finding someone you can collaborate with easily.

Client

Stephen Moon

CEO of Curelation / KRUSH

The Pratt Institute KRUSH project team demonstrated an exceptional ability to uncover meaningful insights through deep and thoughtful user interviews, while translating those findings into highly practical and actionable UX recommendations.

Their work was not only strategically grounded, but also visually polished and aesthetically strong. Beyond the quality of the deliverables, the team showed outstanding communication skills, professionalism, and a genuine level of care throughout the collaboration.

The True Story Behind this Project

The Case Study Author

Yung-Wei Chen

Something I wanna share before you dive into my research story…

As an international student and Asian designer living in New York, I know that “culture” is not something we only select from a dropdown. It shows up in the way we talk to our families, the food we miss, the languages we switch between, the holidays we celebrate, and the quiet expectations we carry into relationships.

That is why KRUSH felt different from a typical usability project. We were not only testing whether users could complete tasks. We were testing whether a dating app could make people feel culturally understood without reducing them to labels.

In this project, my role was to help shape the research direction, support moderated user testing, synthesize participant behavior, and translate findings into recommendations that were both actionable for the client and respectful of the complexity within Asian communities.

Background & Why This Matters

Dating Apps Are Full of Matches, but Not Always Meaningful Ones

KRUSH’s mission is to reimagine the social experience for people who appreciate Asian culture, helping users build genuine relationships through dating, social events, and shared cultural experiences.

During the kickoff, the client shared that KRUSH serves Asian professionals globally, with users across the U.S., Canada, Europe, and APAC regions. The team also discussed current business and usability challenges, including premium features, monetization, unclear icons, onboarding confusion, and the need to improve matching quality.

" How might KRUSH translate Asian cultural identity into product interactions that feel meaningful, inclusive, and actionable? "

The client’s goal was not just to receive basic app feedback. They wanted creative, product-relevant recommendations that could strengthen KRUSH’s matching experience and cultural positioning.

Research Process

From Client Questions to Tested Product Moments

Below section briefly cover the process from research to design in these three months:

01 The Kickoff: Aligning on What KRUSH Needed to Learn

We began with a kickoff meeting with Stephen Moon, CEO of Curelation / KRUSH, to understand what KRUSH hoped to learn and where product decisions were still open.

The client described KRUSH as an Asian-focused dating and social app. Sharing goals around improving match quality, strengthening global cultural communication, and exploring the "Asianess".

The key question was not “Is the app usable?” but “Does its cultural identity framework actually create a more meaningful dating experience?”

We began with a kickoff meeting with Stephen Moon, CEO of Curelation / KRUSH, to understand what KRUSH hoped to learn and where product decisions were still open.

The client described KRUSH as an Asian-focused dating and social app. Sharing goals around improving match quality, strengthening global cultural communication, and exploring the "Asianess".

The key question was not “Is the app usable?” but “Does its cultural identity framework actually create a more meaningful dating experience?”

A screenshot image of client kick-off with KRUSH.

02 Product Walkthrough & Competitive Audit: Understanding the Category

We reviewed KRUSH’s live app and audited culturally focused dating platforms, including BLK, Lox Club, Muzz, Dil Mil, and CaribbeanCupid.

As KRUSH was not competing only with mainstream dating apps. It was competing within a category where cultural identity is part of the product promise.

Thus, we learned that many culturally focused apps create specificity through labels, filters, stickers, or community categories. But those same tools can also flatten identity into stereotypes or checkboxes.

We reviewed KRUSH’s live app and audited culturally focused dating platforms, including BLK, Lox Club, Muzz, Dil Mil, and CaribbeanCupid.

As KRUSH was not competing only with mainstream dating apps. It was competing within a category where cultural identity is part of the product promise.

A screenshot image of product walkthrough with KRUSH.

03 Methodology Design: Testing the Journey, Not Just the Screens

We designed 4 task scenarios with KRUSH’s core user journey:

Profile setup
Discover and Global browsing
Matching and Conversation
Events and Community

These tasks were selected to evaluate how cultural identity appeared across the full experience, from self-presentation to browsing, matching, and offline community. As culture in a dating app is not limited to profile fields. It also appears in how users decide who feels relevant, how they start a conversation, and whether they trust a community space.

We designed 4 task scenarios with KRUSH’s core user journey:

Profile setup
Discover and Global browsing
Matching and Conversation
Events and Community

A Figjam Image capture the process of Secondary Research.

04 Pilot Testing: Fixing the Test Before Testing the Product

We piloted our methodology before the final sessions to check whether the task wording, app setup, recording process, and timing worked as expected.

We made sure the scenarios felt natural for a dating app context, reduced leading language, and clarified where moderators should probe for cultural meaning without pressuring participants to over-explain their identity.

We piloted our methodology before the final sessions to check whether the task wording, app setup, recording process, and timing worked as expected.

05 Moderated User Testing: Understanding Where Meaning Broke Down

We conducted six in-person moderated sessions, each around 45–60 minutes, using the live KRUSH iOS app. Participants completed the same four task scenarios while thinking aloud.

The topic involved identity, dating preferences, and cultural values. A moderated format allowed us to ask follow-up questions in real time and understand not only what users did, but why certain moments felt confusing, meaningful, or incomplete.

We conducted six in-person moderated sessions, each around 45–60 minutes, using the live KRUSH iOS app. Participants completed the same four task scenarios while thinking aloud.

06 Synthesis & Prioritization: From Observations to Recommendations

After the sessions, we reviewed recordings and notes, grouped recurring issues, and prioritized findings based on severity and alignment with KRUSH’s core value proposition. The report used a severity heatmap to show issue patterns across participants.

We learned that the biggest opportunities were not isolated UI problems. There were moments where the product’s cultural promise needed more interaction support.

07 Design Deliverable: Sharing the Highlight Insights and Design Strategies with KRUSH

We translated our findings into a final usability report and client presentation. Instead of simply listing usability issues, we framed our recommendations around KRUSH’s larger product goal: creating culturally resonant and meaningful connections for Asian communities.

The client responded very positively to our work. They appreciated that our team uncovered meaningful insights through thoughtful user interviews and translated them into practical, actionable UX recommendations. They also highlighted the quality of our visual deliverables, communication, professionalism, and care throughout the collaboration.

Participants

Users Who Reflected KRUSH’s Desired Audience

We recruited six participants who identified as part of the global Asian community and were actively using at least one dating app. Participants included East Asian and South Asian users, all in their 20s, located in New York, and seeking more intentional dating experiences.

Overall Results

The Product Had a Strong Cultural Foundation, but the Interaction Layer Needed More Clarity

Participants responded positively to KRUSH’s concept, especially the idea of a dating app centered on Asian culture and community. Events stood out as a low-pressure and unique path to connection, and identity sharing on profiles gave the product a strong foundation.

However, the live app did not always turn that foundation into clear user action. Across the sessions, we found four big-picture patterns:

01 Navigation and feature discoverability created repeated friction.

Users were not always sure what certain features meant or how they differed from each other.

02 Limited context of labels or interaction reduced confidence of users

Users hesitated when labels, icons, or interaction patterns did not explain what would happen next.

03 Cultural breadth in the system was uneven

Some users felt the cultural cues leaned more East Asian, while South Asian participants wanted broader representation of Asian cultural experiences.

04 Global tab confusion was universal issue

Every participant struggled to understand the purpose and interaction of the Global tab, revealing a severe usability issue and a gap in system understanding.

Key Problems & Design Recommendations

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Reflection & Lessons Learned

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The Future

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