ULTIMATE SUN

How can we use technology to convince ultimate frisbee players to apply sunscreen?

JIMMY CHEN • REED MATHENY

HABITS.STANFORD.EDU

The question:

Meet Andrew Pariser

• Member of the Stanford Men’s Ultimate Frisbee Team

• Attends outdoor practice ~3x per week

• Finds out about practice and pickup times through email

• Familiar with text messaging

Monday afternoon practice without Ultimate Sun

Everything goes fine until he realizes he’s gotten another sunburn, and tells himself that he’ll definitely remember sunscreen next time…

Andrew packs his cleats and jersey a few minutes before practice, but does not apply sunscreen – it’s not a habit

Monday afternoon practice with Ultimate Sun

Andrew is in a position to immediately act on the reminder – it’s a hot trigger. He applies sunscreen, goes to practice, and remains sunburn free

15 minutes before practice, Andrew receives an SMS with practice time, location, and sunscreen reminder

A Midpoint Correction

Original Text Message (4/23, 4/24): Pickup on Roble Field at 2:15 today. Don’t forget Sunscreen!

New Text Message (4/30, 5/3): 20 minutes of sun can negatively affect your skin, contributing to skin cancer. Don’t forget sunscreen! Pickup on Roble Field at 3:30.

Justification: The amended format is designed to make the player read the sunscreen reminder before the event information and to increase motivation by giving an informative fact about the dangers of excess sun exposure

Results

Name Sunscreen without reminder?

Friday, 4/23

Saturday, 4/24

Friday, 4/30

Monday, 5/3

John No

Naveed Yes

Ethan No

Kellen No

Sean Yes

Andrew No

Brandon No

Applied sunscreen

Didn’t attend

Didn’t apply sunscreen

What Went Wrong?

Ability: Other players feel the need for sunscreen but don’t have their own bottles at home(Why didn’t you apply sunscreen?) “I don’t have any!” - Ethan

Motivation: Some players just don’t care enough apply sunscreen; there’s little we can do for them. “I tan well.” - Sean

Timing: the season had just ended and the only events were informal pickup games“I only attended for part of the time.” - John

What Worked?The Channel: The SMS

event reminder received a positive response – texting is a great channel for teams with irregular schedules

The Target Group: Sports teams spend lots of time in the sun and frequently use technology to organize events

How has this service impacted your sunscreen habits?

“Increased basic consciousness of the issue.” – John

“It makes me feel more guilty.” – Ethan

“I will most definitely apply sunscreen before playing pickup Ultimate in the future.” - Kellen

Looking Forward:

ULTIMATE SUN 2011*

Leave No Player Behind: As part of the program, we will distribute bottles of sunscreen to every team member – nobody will be incapable of applying sunscreen

Quick Start: We will launch right at the beginning of the 2011 season to make Ultimate Sun a team staple

* Hypothetical