Peer-reviewed, not presumed
The design is evidence-based — here's the research
Every major design decision maps to a specific body of research. This is not wellness branding. This is what the science actually says.
36%
of app-opening attempts close after a brief pause prompt
57%
reduction in app openings after six weeks of the same approach
60s
grace period before Wind Down activates — preserving user autonomy
3
established behavioural frameworks informing every product decision
Wind Down · Default Nudge
Inertia works for you
The design of choice shapes the choice itself
When Wind Down activates automatically if the user does nothing, behavioural inertia works in favour of healthy behaviour. The principle is established: how a choice is structured matters as much as the choice itself. The 60-second grace period preserves what Self-Determination Theory calls autonomy — the user is invited, never forced. "I trust you to decide — but here's the healthy default." That framing is both ethically right and behaviourally optimal.
Sources: Thaler & Sunstein, nudge theory; Deci & Ryan, Self-Determination Theory (1985, 2000)
Override Moment · Friction Research
57% fewer openings
A pause reframes the question entirely
In a peer-reviewed study, a brief intervention when users attempt to open a target app — a deliberation message, a short wait, and the option to dismiss — closes the attempt 36% of the time. Over six weeks, actual app openings fall by 57%. The pause shifts attention from "Can I do this?" to "Do I actually want to do this right now?" The Presence Project goes further: by asking why, it builds the user's emotional map of their phone habits — data no competitor collects.
Lyngs et al. (2022), PNAS — Heidelberg University & Max Planck Institute for Human Development
Three frameworks. One coherent approach.
The app, the course, and the override questions are all designed through the same lens.
SDT
Self-Determination Theory
People sustain behaviour change when they feel autonomous, competent, and connected — not controlled. SDT-based design uses technology as a scaffold for self-reflection, helping users internalise their own values. The goal: they need the app less over time, not more.
In practice → every override question, every report, every module supports autonomy over compliance.
MI
Motivational Interviewing
Digitised MI involves supporting reflective processes through questions that feel exploratory and non-judgmental. We never ask "why are you breaking your rules?" We ask "what's pulling you towards this right now?" — the distinction matters enormously to the user's sense of self.
In practice → the two override questions are MI-designed: curious, warm, never clinical.
COM-B
Capability · Opportunity · Motivation
NICE's preferred behaviour change framework, used extensively in NHS digital health. Every override helps us understand which driver is active — a functional need (Capability), an environmental trigger (Opportunity), or an emotional state (Motivation) — so the response can be matched.
In practice → override data is classified silently and used to personalise content suggestions.