My name is Jessica Grace Uson. I was born and raised in Kapolei, O‘ahu. After graduating from Kapolei High School, I waited seven years before beginning my college journey. College wasn’t in my plans, but the COVID-19 pandemic inspired me to seek more meaningful goals, leading me to earn an AA degree from Leeward Community College. Motivated by this achievement, I decided to pursue my passion further by enrolling in the Creative Media Program and working toward a Bachelor's degree at UH West O‘ahu. If I were an artist’s tool, I’d be an eraser. Not because I’m perfect, but because I make mistakes and then I learn from them. An eraser isn’t about hiding flaws, it’s about giving yourself permission to try again. I’m always willing to rewrite, reshape, and refine myself. Every mistake becomes a chance to grow, and every erased line makes my final picture stronger.
This project examined how color theory and psychology can be applied in UI/UX design to enhance children's learning experiences, particularly in developing social skills on educational websites. It examines how thoughtful color choices can impact kids' emotional engagement, their ability to concentrate, memory retention, and interactions with others in digital learning environments. The research takes a multidisciplinary approach, combining ideas from color psychology, visual design, user-centered design, and educational technology. The paper examines key aspects of color theory and investigates how children emotionally respond to different colors. It also includes a review of existing literature on web design that's friendly for kids and on social-emotional learning (SEL). A practical component of this research involved creating a prototype of a learning website that teaches social skills, showcasing how the findings can be applied in real-life situations. Research indicates that specific colors can evoke distinct emotional and cognitive responses in children.
The concept of creativity has come a long way. The Old Greeks would call those creative forces muses, other religions referred to them as God. Today people still mostly treat creativity as an aha moment outside the area of influence. However, just by looking at the creative process one can tell, that creativity and creative work is more than just that one "Aha-Moment" (insight). It is clear that generating ideas demands planning and preparation, identifying something of interest like a problem, an opportunity or a challenge, doing research. This then leads to thinking of a solution, allowing time to incubate and iterations before arriving at something “complete.” Students learn that hard work is what makes their ideas come to life and sticktuiveness is what helps them get better.
For her senior capstone, Jessica designed an interactive educational website grounded in her research on how color theory and psychology can support children’s learning—especially in developing social and emotional skills. Her study explored how intentional color choices shape a child’s ability to focus, retain information, and engage emotionally within digital spaces, drawing from color psychology, UI/UX principles, and research on social-emotional learning. Using these insights, Jessica created a functional prototype that demonstrates how thoughtful design can make online learning more inviting, supportive, and developmentally appropriate for young users. Her project highlights the powerful role that visual design plays in children’s digital experiences and showcases how research-driven UI/UX decisions can meaningfully enhance learning outcomes.
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