A habit tracker that adapts its UI, rewards, and reminders based on a user’s neurodivergent profile, driven by a research-backed decision matrix.
Despite rising awareness and diagnosis of neurodivergent conditions—with 15–20% of the global population estimated to be neurodivergent—most productivity apps are still designed for neurotypical patterns of thinking. This results in tools that can be overwhelming, demotivating, or simply ineffective for many users with ADHD, depression, or both¹²⁸.
Approach
I began by synthesizing research from behavioral psychology, human-computer interaction studies, and mental health literature to identify core design needs for ADHD, depression, and their overlap³⁴⁵⁷.
Key insights
ADHD: Effective habit-tracking tools for people with ADHD rely on novelty, instant feedback, and gamified cues⁴.
Depression: Users experiencing depression benefit from lowered cognitive load, gentle encouragement, and positive reinforcement to build and sustain habits⁵.
Combined: Overlaps of ADHD and depression demand solutions that balance stimulation (to sustain engagement) and simplicity (to prevent overwhelm)⁶.
Tone in Notifications: Notifications avoid guilt or negative language, offering playful prompts for ADHD and gentle nudges for depression⁷.
The app dynamically adjusts its UI, reminders, and reward systems based on the user’s behavior⁶³⁷.
Drawing from these insights, I thought of a decision matrix mapping condition tags to specific feature adaptations with weights.
This mockup emphasizes engagement, clarity, and motivation through playful and interactive elements. The interface focuses on breaking tasks down into manageable units with clear progress visualization and humor-infused notifications to maintain user interest and reduce overwhelm.
Urgency-based Color Coding: Tasks are color-coded by descending urgency to visually prioritize focus and encourage timely completion.
Minimal Task Display with Expandable Details: Task titles are shown upfront, with subtasks accessible via a tap that triggers a smooth animation, balancing information load and interaction stimulation.
Progress Bars with Daily Affirmations: Each task includes a progression bar linked to humorous affirmations to engage and reward progress, maintaining motivation.
Completed Task Section: Separates finished tasks to celebrate achievements and keep the interface uncluttered.
Interactive Notifications: Humor-centric notification texts paired with casual, non-judgmental response buttons encourage user interaction without pressure.
This approach aims to create a friendly, motivating environment tailored to ADHD cognitive styles by combining structure with playfulness and minimal cognitive load.
Depression
This mockup is designed to support users managing depression, focusing on simplicity, calmness, and gentle encouragement. The interface reduces cognitive load by limiting visible tasks and using muted colors to avoid overstimulation, while fostering a kind and reassuring tone to help maintain engagement.
Design Decisions:
Muted Pastel Colors: Uses low-contrast colors to create a soothing visual environment that reduces overwhelm.
Limited Task Visibility: Only two key tasks are shown initially with the option to expand, minimizing choices and cognitive strain.
Gentle Affirmations: Notifications emphasize kindness and small victories to encourage progress at the user’s pace.
Simple Interaction: Fewer interactive elements reduce decision fatigue, helping users focus on completing essential tasks.
Progress Indicators: Subtle progress dots provide a quiet sense of accomplishment without pressure.
This design is tailored to create a supportive and steady environment for users during low energy or motivation phases commonly experienced with depression.
The Combined mode mockup integrates elements from both ADHD and depression profiles, balancing stimulation and calmness to meet the needs of users with overlapping neurodivergent conditions. It aims to offer engaging yet reassuring support, adapting to multiple cognitive and emotional experiences simultaneously.
Design Decisions:
Balanced Color Palette: Combines muted backgrounds with brighter, softer task colors to provide clarity without overstimulation.
Expandable Task List: Displays a limited number of tasks upfront with the ability to expand, managing information load while encouraging interaction.
Mixed-Tone Affirmations: Notifications blend playful motivation with gentle reassurance to appeal to diverse moods and energy levels.
Progress Visualization: Uses clear progress bars with smooth animations to engage users without overwhelming them.
Responsive Controls: Buttons and interactions are designed to be friendly and low-pressure, accommodating fluctuating attention and motivation.
This hybrid design creates a flexible, personalized space that respects the complexity of overlapping neurodivergent traits, fostering sustained engagement and progress.
Potential Product Features
Implement flexible handling of missed streaks by allowing occasional missed days without breaking the user's progress streak, reducing pressure and promoting sustainable habit-building.
Expand customization options to better address diverse neurodivergent needs, enabling users to tailor interface, notifications, and overall experience to their unique cognitive and emotional profiles.
Integrate a locally run large language model (LLM) that learns from individual user behavior on-device to provide personalized support while fully preserving data privacy.
With user consent, anonymized behavioral data could be shared securely with qualified researchers to contribute valuable insights into neurodivergent interactions with technology.
This research collaboration may help secure funding streams to support ongoing development, enhancements, and long-term sustainability of the app.
Bibliography
Cognassist. (2025, March 31). Neurodiversity Statistics and Research. Retrieved August 20, 2025, from https://cognassist.com/neurodiversity-statistics-and-research/
YouGov. (2024, November 13). Neurodiversity in the U.S.: 19% of Americans identify as neurodivergent. Retrieved August 20, 2025, from https://today.yougov.com/health/articles/50950-neurodiversity-neurodivergence-in-united-states-19-percent-americans-identify-neurodivergent-poll
Ignitec. (2025, August 6). IoT for neurodivergent users: Designing inclusive smart technology. Retrieved August 21, 2025, from https://www.ignitec.com/insights/iot-for-neurodivergent-users-designing-inclusive-smart-technology/
ADDitude Magazine. (2022, February 13). Healthy Habits & Adult ADHD: How to Stay Focused. Retrieved August 21, 2025, from https://www.additudemag.com/healthy-habits-adult-adhd-focus/
Habit Behavioral Health. (2024, October 23). How does depression impact habits? Retrieved August 22, 2025, from https://www.habitbehavioralhealth.com/blog-articles/how-does-depression-impact-habits
The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health. (2024, December 31). Addressing multiple neurodivergent identities in clinical and research settings. Retrieved August 22, 2025, from https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanchi/article/PIIS2352-4642(24)00261-X/abstract
Dool Creative Agency. (2025, January 30). Designing UX for Neurodiverse Users. Retrieved August 22, 2025, from https://dool.agency/designing-ux-for-neurodiverse-users/
Wikipedia. (2004, October 15). Neurodiversity. Retrieved August 22, 2025, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurodiversity
