Designing Empathetic Service Experiences Using Storytelling Approach: A Case Study

Abstract

Storytelling is a well-known technique to emphasize emotions. This paper explores the integration of storytelling techniques into service design to cultivate empathetic service experiences. Emphasizing the significance of emotional connection in social service contexts, we designed services for Adolescents Living with HIV (ALHIV) in India. Due to a lack of awareness and social stigma, ALHIV are unable to make timely and responsible life decisions around intimacy and HIV status disclosure. We designed services that disseminate essential information and enable ALHIV to make informed life decisions. The solution is an interactive story media where users make decisions around in-design encounters that parallel with possible real-life encounters. As a result, they get to explore multiple possibilities in a safe space, leading to improved real-life decision-making. This paper demonstrates the replicable framework of orchestration of human and technology touchpoints through multiple dynamic and choice-based scenarios.

The study examines the synergy between service design and narrative frameworks. Through a detailed case study, the research underscores the pivotal role of storytelling in fostering genuine user engagement by infusing empathy-driven narratives into service encounters. Overall, this research contributes a novel perspective on designing empathetic services, demonstrating the role of storytelling in crafting meaningful service experiences.