ChromaSpace
Role
UX/UI Designer, VR Interaction Designer
Team
Sam Guzman, Grace Li, Kavya Jayaprakash
Timeline
4 weeks (2024)
ChromaSpace is a virtual reality-based stress management tool designed to help students cope with academic pressure, social anxiety, and digital fatigue.
Using color psychology and immersive interaction, the experience empowers users to self-regulate emotions, build confidence, and reset focus within personalized virtual environments.
Objective:
To design an immersive VR tool that allows students to process stress, improve focus, and build emotional resilience through the use of color-coded environments, interactive elements, and guided relaxation techniques.
Students frequently experience academic overload, social anxiety, and digital distractions—factors that directly impact their mental health and performance.
Traditional stress-reduction tools often fail to engage or adapt to individual needs. ChromaSpace addresses this by offering personalized, emotionally responsive VR environments rooted in psychological and neuroscientific research.
The Problem-
Research Insights
Theoretical Framework
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Color Psychology
Used to align each environment with a desired emotional state (e.g., blue = calm, red = anger)
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James-Lange & Schachter-Singer Theories
Guided how physical and environmental stimuli would evoke specific emotional responses.
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Emotion Regulation Theory
Informed user goals such as mindfulness, grounding, and emotional reset.
Prototype
Interaction Design Elements
Teleportation Navigation
Selected for its low-friction movement and reduced motion sickness in calming spaces
Object Interactions (Sockets)
Students engage with calming objects—these tactile interactions reinforce a sense of agency and control
Ambient Audio
Color-coded rooms feature matching instrumental soundscapes to enhance emotional response
Prototype
VR Experience Flow
Onboarding & Emotional Check-in
Users identify current emotional state to be matched with a recommended room
Color-Coded Room Entry
Each room is tied to a mood (calm, focused, uplifted)
Exploration & Interaction
Users teleport, engage with objects, and reflect in immersive scenes
Decompression & Transition
Audio and spatial cues support emotional grounding before exit
Educational Goals & Outcomes
Identify stress triggers in their academic environment
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Apply color-based emotional alignment techniques
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Use immersive interactions to practice mindfulness and decompression
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Establish boundaries between academic and personal mental space
Identify stress triggers in their academic environment • Apply color-based emotional alignment techniques • Use immersive interactions to practice mindfulness and decompression • Establish boundaries between academic and personal mental space
Reflection
ChromaSpace allowed me to explore how immersive design can foster emotional health. Designing for well-being requires a careful blend of psychology, interactivity, and visual storytelling. I learned that small interactions—like teleporting to a quiet zone or holding a calming object—can meaningfully impact focus and stress.
If further developed, I would incorporate biometric feedback, multi-sensory input (like haptics), and adaptive room layouts based on user history.