Human-Centric Design in Applications for Emergency Preparedness and Response in Rural Communities: The Case of the E!App

Scholars and practitioners are adopting human-centric design (HCD) to more effectively develop digital tools in the public sector. HCD is an iterative approach to problem-solving, focused on bringing together user needs, technological feasibility, and economic viability. Despite gaining popularity in other contexts, there are only few empirical studies on the application of the HCD approach in the public sector. We examine the case of the E!App, a smartphone application for emergency preparedness and response in Upstate New York, to understand the extent to which HCD improves technology adoption and identify some of the challenges associated with using HCD in the development of digital tools. Four focus group discussions and 12 interviews reveal that using the HCD approach facilitates the adoption of digital tools among users when their inputs are fully incorporated into the design. However, it is not always possible to include user inputs in the development of digital tools. More specifically, practical concerns related to inconsistent user feedback, technical feasibility, and long-term consequences of design choices create challenges in the design and development of digital tools.