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Chyless WorldHuman-Centered Research + Design

Human-Centered Research + Design

Studying how people think, behave, and live — then using what we learn to design better products, services, and experiences.

Explore the workWork with Chyless World
STARTINTENDEDOBSERVEDthe gap
Fig. 01 — Intention rarely predicts behavior. The distance is where we work.
01Human-centered design02Behavioral science03Systems thinking04Technology & AI05Health & well-being

01 — The evidence

We don’t design from assumptions. We study what people actually do.

  1. F.01
    THE GAPd = 0.66INTENTIONd = 0.36BEHAVIOR

    Strong intentions don’t always translate into equally strong behavior change.

    Across 47 experimental tests, interventions changed intentions more strongly than they changed actual behavior.

    Webb & Sheeran, 2006Psychological Bulletin
  2. F.02
    49%Opt-in
    86%Auto-enroll

    Changing the default changed what people did.

    When enrollment became automatic rather than opt-in, 401(k) participation increased from 49% to 86%.

    Madrian & Shea, 2001The Quarterly Journal of Economics
  3. F.03
    TimeExperience

    The same amount of technology use can represent very different experiences.

    Two people can spend the same amount of time online while doing completely different things, in different contexts, with different effects.

    Lee & Žarnic, 2024OECD

02 — Two doors into Chyless World

Two doors into Chyless World

Chyless World Studio

Organizations bring us problems.

We investigate what’s happening, understand people’s experience and behavior, find what’s getting in the way, then design better products, services, and experiences.

Enter Studio

Chyless World Labs

We investigate what’s next.

We investigate questions about people, technology, and the conditions shaping human life — then turn what we learn into experiments, concepts, and prototypes.

Enter Labs

03 — How we think

We don’t start with solutions.

  1. 01UnderstandWhat’s actually happening, and why.
  2. 02FrameWhat the real opportunity is.
  3. 03DesignWhat understanding becomes.
  4. 04TestWhether it holds up in practice.
  5. 05LearnWhat to carry forward.

04 — Chyless World Labs

Current Design Study

Digital well-being

  1. Observation
  2. Research
  3. Interpretation
  4. Design
  5. Artifact

The question

How can we live well with technology — so that it works for us, rather than against us?

  1. 01Research

    Digital well-being is more complicated than screen time.

    Benefits and drawbacks can coexist. What matters includes how technology is used, why it is used, and under what conditions.

  2. 02Interpretation

    Yet the advice often sounds remarkably simple.

    Use your phone less. Set limits. Stop scrolling. Have more self-control.

  3. 03Design response

    So we made a prescription.

    A speculative treatment for the complications of modern digital life.

Explore the study
A prescription bottle labeled 'Digital Well-Being — Speculative Rx' by Chyless World Labs, surrounded by capsules stamped with words like Attention, Balance, Clarity, Agency, and Presence, on a countertop.
Speculative design. Not a medical product.

05 — Credibility

Chyanne Robbins

A researcher and designer working across human-centered design, behavioral science, technology, and public health.

Degrees
Master of Public Health — Health Promotion & Disease Prevention
B.A. Communication Studies
Continuing study
Behavioral Science + Human-Centered Design — Duke University
Software Engineering — General Assembly
Practice
Research
Design
Research & writing — ChyanneRobbins.com

06 — Work with us

If you’re working on a difficult human problem, let’s talk.

Start a conversation

Our work is best suited to organizations that value human outcomes as a design constraint—not an afterthought.

  • Established & growing organizations
  • Founder-led companies
  • Funded teams & institutions
  • Public-facing & community systems