curaJOY, a nonprofit organization specializing in clinician-supervised AI behavioral health solutions, turns to UserTesting, a SaaS leader in experience research and insights, to get feedback from niche audiences, including BIPOC, immigrants, and those with diverse abilities and identities, to build more inclusive and accessible health solutions.
Behavioral and mental health care has traditionally been rooted in Western medicine, often neglecting the cultural contexts within which behaviors occur. Research indicates that social-emotional skills must be assessed through culturally relevant lenses to be truly accurate. However, with approximately 80 percent of therapists being white, there is a significant lack of ethnic minority therapists and culturally relevant interventions. curaJOY leverages UserTesting to bridge this gap, making its services accessible, gender-equitable, racially sensitive, and locally informed.
By harnessing cutting-edge technologies such as AI and virtual reality, curaJOY aims to address the global shortage of behavioral health providers and enhance social and mental health resources’ inclusivity, efficiency, and adaptability of social and mental health resources. CEO Caitlyn Wang emphasizes, “Psychological safety is crucial in therapeutic relationships. For instance, a BIPOC female who has experienced abuse by a male might not feel safe with a white male counselor. Currently, families often have no choice due to the scarcity of diverse providers.”
To tackle this issue, curaJOY has developed a diverse array of realistic 3D AI coaches that match users’ identities and demographics, serving as the primary contact window and coach for users. This approach not only ensures a sense of safety, but also fosters more effective therapeutic outcomes. Additionally, curaJOY conducts research with under-represented students and stay-at-home parents to develop and test their family wellness app. Their program participants, who are predominantly BIPOC or have learning differences, physical disabilities, or behavioral health challenges, are exploring how AI can be culturally responsive, the impact of wellness coach demographics on user honesty, and the effectiveness of gamification in social-emotional skill-building activities.
Jax Powell, UI/UX lead at curaJOY, highlights the partnership’s transformative impact: “UserTesting’s network allows us to reach and engage hard-to-reach audiences, tailoring our solutions to meet the specific needs of families, teachers, and clinicians. Our design team, composed of BIPOC, immigrants, individuals who are hard of hearing, autistic, and those with a wide range of identities and abilities, benefits immensely from this feedback loop at scale.”
Clarissa Shen, a Youth Ambassador at curaJOY, has received advanced training from UserTesting, and earned an Advanced User Experience Design and Research Certification. She plans to apply these skills to involve more students in the mental health discussion, address biases in research, and enhance audience recruitment and engagement. The team of 11 students she leads will start working on the world’s first youth-created AI coach this month. This will allow students to discreetly access evidence-based social-emotional health support throughout the day, without fearing backlash from parents or peers.
“We are thrilled to support curaJOY in their mission to make behavioral health solutions more inclusive and effective,” said Michelle Huff, CMO of UserTesting. “Our solutions’ ability to provide deep insights into diverse audiences that opt-in to share their perspectives and user experiences, and help build empathy and deeper understanding across teams will help curaJOY fine-tune their offerings, ensuring they meet the multifaceted needs of their users.”
curaJOY is driven by the mission to provide continuous support for diverse families and appreciates the community support from various industries. With access to fast human insight and UserTesting’s advanced analytics and machine-learning-powered dashboards, curaJOY can now reach niche audiences, validate findings, and measure performance over time, ensuring their solutions are as effective and inclusive as possible.
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