Helping parents manage difficult conversations around a taboo subject

Desk Research

We started analysing the Romanian context by reviewing policy documents, media debates, NGO reports, and statistical data. This helped us map how sexual education is framed, the scale of underage pregnancy, and the contrast between political resistance, religious influence, and the calls from NGOs and students for science-based education.

Competitor Analysis

Analyzing international platforms on sexual education, we reviewed how they approach sensitive topics and engage families. We also examined how Romanian NGOs communicate about the subject, identifying differences in tone, content, and cultural framing. This helped us spot opportunities to build trust, reduce stigma, and design guidance that feels both approachable and relevant for local parents.

Surveys & Interviews

We ran 28 surveys for parents (in Romania with children up to their early twenties), follow-up interviews with both parents and teenagers to understand both sides of the conversation. Parents often felt ashamed or afraid of saying the wrong thing, while teenagers were more open than expected and wanted to hear from their parents rather than friends. This revealed a clear gap between parental fear and children's willingness to talk.

After mapping survey and interview insights, we built archetypes to capture the cultural and generational diversity of Romanian parents. These archetypes ranged from Traditional Orthodox Believers with very low openness to sex education, to Urban Professionals and EU-Aspiring Progressives with high or very high openness. Visualizing them across generations helped us see how attitudes shift between grandparents, parents, and Gen Z.

From these archetypes, we created personas to give our research a human face. Each persona represented a type of parent or teenager, their motivations, fears, and comfort level in discussing sexual education. This helped us design not only for the most open parents but also for those who felt anxious or resistant.

We then developed scenarios to map how Bloom would fit into daily life. For example, a mother anxious about “saying it wrong” might first use the Reflection Flow in the app before inviting her child to pick a card. A teenager curious about hygiene might choose the topic and let the voice assistant guide the dialogue, reducing pressure on both sides.

Archetypes gave us a cultural map, personas brought empathy and focus, and scenarios showed how Bloom could bridge the gap between parental fear and children's willingness to talk. These tools directly shaped the product's tone, flows, and multimodal structure.

To validate our ideas, we moved quickly into prototyping. We built a functional version of the physical kit using an Arduino Nano ESP32, adding LEDs, a mic, and a speaker to simulate the assistant's role. The card system was tested in parallel to see if children would actually enjoy choosing topics in a game-like way.

On the digital side, we tested both scripted and open-agent versions of the voice assistant with parents. Usability sessions showed that parents felt more confident after using the Reflection Flow, and that having the assistant 'say it out loud' first lowered the sense of awkwardness. Children engaged with the cards and treated the experience more like play than a lecture. These sessions confirmed that combining education, play, and mediation created the right conditions for dialogue.

The app was designed to balance clarity, warmth, and reassurance, turning an anxious subject into an approachable experience. A soft colour palette and friendly illustrations support parents in feeling confident rather than intimidated. The interface is structured around two main flows.

Reflection Flow

(builds self-awareness and confidence before moving into educational content)

• Starts with gentle prompts in a chat-journal hybrid, where parents can type or speak freely.
• The assistant offers optional follow-ups to deepen reflection, but parents control the pace and length.
• Reflections can link directly to articles, myth-busting facts, or quick tips from the library.
• Parents can also continue the flow with the voice assistant, making it easier when writing isn't practical.

Learning Flow

(turns a complex subject into a dependable guide for every stage of a child's sexual education)

• Offers both articles and podcasts, so parents can choose the format that fits their schedule.
• Begins with 'must-have' topics, ensuring age-relevant conversations.
• Includes a Myth vs. Truth feature, pairing cultural misconceptions with science-backed facts to spark moments of realisation.
• Parents can navigate by age group, previewing future topics or revisiting earlier ones.

By the end of the project, we delivered a multimodal prototype and supporting materials. The prototype combined a parent app, a physical kit with cards, and a voice assistant demo. The app prepared parents through reflection and learning, the cards gave children control over the topic, and the assistant mediated the conversation with real-life scenarios and guided questions.

We also created promotional materials to showcase how Bloom could be positioned in the real world. These included branding elements, storytelling assets, and visuals that framed the product as approachable, trustworthy, and culturally sensitive.

Testing sessions confirmed the value of this integrated flow. Parents said the Reflection Flow helped them feel more confident. Children engaged with the game-like card choice, which shifted control in their favour. Both groups highlighted that having the assistant “say it out loud first” reduced the sense of awkwardness.