Return
Final Year Project
Empowering Smoke Quitters Through Psychological Resilience
AIA Award-Winning Smoking Cessation Solution
Role
Design & UX Research
Team
Kelvin Fong
Year
2025
Project Type
School Project
Overview
Smokend helps smokers quit for good by tackling the real challenges they face when trying to stop. Our solution pairs a mobile app with a detachable wristband that tracks physiological changes, provides emotional support during cravings, and rewards progress—creating a complete support system that keeps quitters on track.
Starting Point
Many of us have heard friends or family say, "I'm going to quit smoking," only to see them relapse weeks or months later. It made us wonder: if people genuinely want to quit, why is it so difficult to resist the urge on their own? This question became the starting point of our design process. At first, we assumed the answer was simply nicotine addiction. But as we began our research, we discovered that quitting smoking is influenced by far more than physical cravings alone. Understanding those factors became the focus of our investigation.
Looking for Answers
To better understand why people struggle to quit smoking, we gathered perspectives from multiple sources. Through interviews, surveys, conversations with a smoking cessation expert, and background research, we investigated the challenges people face before, during, and after attempting to quit.
67
📝 Surveys
15
💬 Interviews
2
🎓 Expert Interviews
20 ~
📃 Literature Review
Problems
After conducting several interviews and some research, we found a number of insights and problems that are actually making the quitting process much more difficult.
Smoking fulfils more than nicotine
Many participants did not smoke because of addiction alone. Smoking had become part of their daily routine — a way to cope with stress, take a break, or mark a moment. Quitting meant losing a familiar ritual, not just breaking a physical habit.
Quitting can feel like a lonely journey
Without consistent support, participants struggled to stay committed. Social pressure and the experience of quitting alone made it much harder to resist temptation, especially during difficult moments.
Motivation fades when progress isn't visible
Participants could not clearly see how far they had come. Without visible progress, their motivation declined, and staying committed became harder over time.
Triggers are impossible to avoid completely
Participants tried to avoid situations that sparked cravings, but this was difficult to sustain. Everyday cues — seeing someone else smoke — could reignite the urge instantly. Self-regulation in those moments was one of the hardest parts of the journey.
Design exploration
Guided by what we had learned, we explored ways to help users replace smoking rituals, feel supported, and manage cravings. We tested an early concept that used game mechanics to motivate users through an avatar system.
First Prototype
Gamification
Guides users through calming breathing exercises during moments of stress. This helps interrupt cravings before they become automatic.
Support & Commitment
Quitting smoking is often easier with support, so we make it a two-person effort instead of a solo one. The supporter provides encouragement, accountability, and motivation by tracking the quitter’s carbon monoxide and stress levels.
Breathing exercise
A detachable wristband becomes a breathing stick to help ease cravings. It prompts breathing exercises based on stress and detects carbon monoxide when users breathe into it.
Feedback from tester
“I think the fire character may be somewhat useful, but it still can’t provide enough motivation.”
P1“Personally, I’m not very fond of games, but I believe the character’s evolution can help visualize one’s smoking cessation journey and serve as encouragement.”
P2“I can imagine some people might enjoy the nurturing aspect, but for myself, I think it may not be effective in providing a sense of achievement.”
P4What to keep, remove, or change
Keep
Breathing exercises effectively relieved cigarette cravings.
Supporter commitments helped motivate and sustain smoking cessation.
Remove
Raising an character through gamification may not sustain motivation, as it lacks a strong emotional connection for quitters.
Iterative refinement
What should we do to further help the user feel connected to their goal?
Is it possible to further develop their internal motivation?
Design Iteration
Rather than refining the avatar system, we changed direction. We shifted from game mechanics to psychological resilience — focusing on commitment, visibility, and social support instead of points and rewards.
User testing showed that avatar rewards weren't working well. We changed to a financial commitment approach where users invest financially in their quit journey. This taps into loss aversion—people hate losing money they've already put in. The change was based on direct user feedback and improved retention rates.
How financial commitment works?
For these situations, we are trying to create a feedback loop that enhances smokers’ psychological resilience. This is based on the behavioural science concept of loss aversion, as people tend to try to avoid losing something. That is why we implemented this financial commitment system: when users smoke, they lose their money, which is then donated to charity. On the other hand, if they can keep staying smoke-free, they receive a daily refund, which makes them feel as though they are making progress.
Validation
Before committing to financial accountability as the core of our solution, we wanted to understand whether it genuinely created stronger motivation than our original gamified concept.
Testing Method
We simulated the financial commitment system using PayMe. Participants deposited money, and smoke-free milestones triggered partial refunds. The evaluation showed that combining financial commitment, visible progress, and social support created stronger motivation than the earlier gamified concept.
Insights We Found
Longest quit attempt
The participant remained smoke-free for all 20 days, exceeding previous quit attempts.
Refunds felt like rewards
Daily refunds were perceived as "new money," reinforcing progress despite coming from the participant's own deposit.
Frequent reinforcement increased motivation
Daily refunds strengthened the participant's identity as someone actively quitting smoking.
Personalisation is important
The deposit amount should be tailored to each person's financial situation to remain meaningful.
These findings gave us confidence that behavioural commitment created stronger accountability than the virtual companion explored in our first concept, while also identifying opportunities for future refinement.
Final Design
On-Wrist Support
The wearable exists to provide timely support during moments that matter.
Breathing Exercise
Guides users through calming breathing exercises during moments of stress. This helps interrupt cravings before they become automatic.
Stress Detection
Recognises signs of increased stress and prompts timely support, helping users manage cravings before they become overwhelming.
Carbon Monoxide Monitoring
Shows improvements in carbon monoxide levels as users stay smoke-free, providing visible progress that reinforces motivation and long-term commitment.
Bringing the Strategy to Life
Financial Commitment
Quitters deposited money before beginning their journey. Smoke-free days earned partial refunds. Relapses sent deposits to charity. Escalating penalties kept the stakes meaningful over time, turning cigarette money into daily motivation.
Progress Tracking
The Home Screen showed users how much money they had reclaimed and how many smoke-free days they had accumulated. This gave them immediate, visible proof of their progress.
Supporter Feature
Users invited a friend or family member to follow their progress. Supporters confirmed smoke-free days, which validated daily rewards. This turned quitting from an isolated effort into a shared commitment.
Diary
Users reflected on their progress, tracked emotional patterns, and documented milestones. The feature helped quitters see quitting as an identity they were building, not just a habit they were breaking.
Customized Goal
The customized goal feature lets users set personal rewards—enter an item and its price, then save through quitting and cash out the deposit when the goal is reached.
Demo
We presented the final concept to the AIA design team
Reflection
The right mechanism matters more than engagement tricks
Behavioural design is not about making experiences fun — it is about aligning the right psychological mechanism with the user's real goal. Financial commitment worked because it connected daily action to a tangible consequence.
Fail early to find what not to build
The avatar concept failed in testing, and that failure saved us from investing in the wrong direction. Early prototypes are most useful when they reveal what the solution should not be.
© 2026. Made by Billy S.
