1. Quicksand Design Studio | Sanitation Research Project | Research Outline – July 2010
Research Goals and Focus
The overarching goal of this project is to conduct in-depth research into the behaviors, attitudes, and beliefs
surrounding sanitation in low-income urban India, in order to provide a comprehensive and illustrative account of user
experiences relating to sanitation and various interconnected issues.
Specific goals for this study include:
1. Map user experience around sanitation practices and utilities
2. Identify key triggers for positive and negative user sanitation practices
3. Present research data in a format that makes it accessible and actionable by diverse stakeholders, from policy
makers to designers to program implementers who can facilitate innovation within their domains
The primary objective of the study is to capture and communicate the user experience of urban community sanitation
services, with a secondary objective of examining provider experiences across the sanitation value chain.
The audience for this study will include a variety of organizations, including those currently working on innovating new
products and approaches in the field of sanitation. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, WaterAid, the London School
of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, the Acumen Fund, and various other NGOs and individual researchers will directly
benefit from the study findings. This study is unique in that it will provide a detailed bottom-up perspective that has
been under-examined in the field of sanitation development: that of the individual who must make a variety of
sanitation-related decisions on a daily basis. By taking a people-centered approach to this research, we intend to
generate new insights that catalyze current and future work in the area of sanitation and development.
Key research questions identified in collaboration with selected domain experts are listed in the following table, along
with proposed research activities:
Research Objectives Research Questions Indicative Research Activities
Identify characteristics of collective How can we characterize community - Develop sanitation profiles for 20-25
user behavior around sanitation w.r.t interactions regarding sanitation and households in each location; profiling
ownership, use and maintenance of identify salient dimensions? their sanitation habits in a way that is
utilities. rich and informative - gathering
Do users feel a sense of ownership information on who uses what within
towards the operation and the family
maintenance of sanitation facilities? - Document successful and
What are the determinants of this sustainable community efforts
sense of ownership? What benefits around sanitation - sanitation habits
does a sense of ownership provide to of members of a CBO (community
users? based organization), responsibilities
& day to day operations, interactions
What differentiates user from non-user between CBO and community
groups? What segments exist within residents, issues, challenges,
each group? solutions proposed and implemented
- Time lapse studies of community
sanitation options
- Gathering sanitation related data
available with local civic authorities

2. Quicksand Design Studio | Sanitation Research Project | Research Outline – July 2010
Research Objectives Research Questions Indicative Research Activities
Identify key attributes of user How do materials and environment - Observe sanitation behaviors for
experience around defecation. Analyze drive behaviour? What design different families and different
how they influence individual decision- attributes are preferred by users? members within the family
making around sanitation. - Observe night and day scenarios
What are positive aspects of open - Observe private sanitation in
defecation (for end-users, for others) households with similar economic
compared to alternatives? profiles to document how use of
materials & design drives user
Characterize the experience of interactions
defecation & expectations surrounding - Observe the entire journey (of time of
it use, getting to a facility, act of use,
post-use, journey back)
In terms of user experience, what other - Observe open defecation & toilet use
services go hand-in-hand with but for minority demographics
sanitation? (women, children, elderly)
- Journey of open defecation of
What are toilets competing with? What different user groups - when do
alternatives do users choose between people go, who they go with, the
and what determines their choice? experience of reaching there,
defecating and coming back, does
What are barriers to access and use by the location change, why?
all potential end-users? How do needs
differ among users?
Explore people’s perceptions & What are norms & taboos associated - Co-creation exercise: asking people
attitudes towards sanitation. Identify with defecation and urination? How do to imagine sanitation future, design
people’s aspirations and how they they vary by social/cultural/economic their own toilets (physical model
influence their behaviors and attitudes segment? making)
towards sanitation. - Get children in a local school or
How is “privacy” defined by users? women groups to put on a street
When is it important, to whom, and theater that captures issues around
why? defecating and urinating in their
households. Document the
How do users perceive interventions performances.
that challenge the status quo? How do - Storytelling through scenarios and
you make them more acceptable? gathering user reactions
What are users motivations towards
payment vs non-payment?
What attributes of the system are
considered aspirational?
What is the role of different triggers in
generating demand for sanitation
services - communication, lifestyle &
income changes, health concerns?

3. Quicksand Design Studio | Sanitation Research Project | Research Outline – July 2010
Research Design
The following locations have been identified for a reconnaissance visit:
- Delhi
- Mumbai
- Ahmedabad
- Bangalore/Mysore
These tentative location clusters have been selected to illustrate a diverse range of sanitation experiences in India.
Taking account of variable factors such as cultural differences between North and South India, population
demographics of different cities, local community dynamics, and different types of sanitation facilities and their usage in
varying locations will help strengthen our research. Specific variable factors to be analyzed in each location cluster
include:
- Size of city
- Weather conditions
- Types of sanitation facilities available:
- Community sanitation facilities
- Private sanitation facilities
- No sanitation facilities (open defecation)
- Quality of sanitation facilities available
- Time elapsed since sanitation facilities built
- Local government engagement
- Civil society engagement
- Community dynamics: homogenous population vs. mixed/migrant population
- Culture of local population
Within each location cluster, we will locate and select a few subset communities which have varying sanitation-related
experiences. This may include (but is not limited to) communities which have access to community toilets; communities
which have engaged in sanitation-related interventions led by the local government or civil NGOs; communities with no
sanitation facilities or interventions; and so on. Within these communities, we will engage with individuals and
institutions through a variety of different interactions and activities, as outlined in the “Research Goals and Focus”
section.
Aspects to be considered when engaging with individuals in our target communities include:
- Gender (experiences of men vs. women)
- Age (varying experiences of children, adolescents, adults, and elderly people)
- Size/type of households
- Family dynamics
- Toilet usage within family
- Income brackets
- Education
- Livelihoods
- Time spent living in present location
- Access to media
- Exposure to sanitation campaigns
- Health (incidence of/exposure to disease, etc.)
- Location in relation to community toilets/fields/etc. (distance, quality of access)

4. Quicksand Design Studio | Sanitation Research Project | Research Outline – July 2010
Research Schedule
Activity Schedule Objective Methodology/Activities Deliverables
Jul 5th - Jul 21st ‣ Finalize research goals, - Assimilating feedback from - Final research plan outlining
methodology and project kick off and expert objective, questions, study
Pre-field Preparation schedule interviews design and schedule of
- Drafting research schedule and activities
plan
- Iterating with the Foundation on
appropriateness of suggested
objectives and schedule
Jul 22nd - Jul 31st ‣ Define final location - Visit potential locations
clusters for the study - Identify cultural guides and
Field Visit 1 logistical support
- Identify clusters of interesting
sanitation related activities/
locations that can become
eventual field sites
- Arm’s length (observational)
documentation of household
sanitation behaviors
Aug 1st – Aug 14th ‣ Production of research - Evaluate and confirm relevance - Project update to be emailed
guides of research sites to study to a close group of domain
Synthesis & ‣ First project update objectives experts
Preparation + - Generate activity guides for - Activity guides for upcoming
Project Update second field visit field visit
Aug 15th – Aug 25th ‣ Comprehensively - Extensive rich media collection
document collective in selected locations observing
Field Visit 2 behavior around sanitation at a community level
sanitation - Baseline interviews with 20-25
households in each study site
- Community mapping/
production of a location fact file
- Activity studies of toilet use/
open defecation
Aug 26th – Sep 11th ‣ Regrouping and - Aggregate data collected to - Working document capturing
synthesis of findings from analyze sanitation behavior at a insights and analysis from
Synthesis & second field visit community level second field visit
Preparation + ‣ Refinement and - Project update to be emailed
Project Update production of research to a close group of domain
guides experts
‣ Second project update
Sep 12th- Sep 26th ‣ Comprehensively - Journey of use (user
document the journey of experiences of open defecation,
Field Visit 3 use of sanitation utilities toilet use)
- Further interactions with a
smaller group of users,
shadowing sessions to
showcase “A Day in the Life”
Sep 27th – Oct 20th ‣ Regrouping and - Aggregate data collected to - Working document capturing
synthesis of findings from analyse user experience around insights and analysis from third
Synthesis & third field visit defecation related activities field visit
Preparation + ‣ Refinement and - Project update to be emailed
Project Update production of field kit to a close group of domain
‣ Third project update experts

5. Quicksand Design Studio | Sanitation Research Project | Research Outline – July 2010
Date TBD ‣ Share mid-course - Facilitate a mid-course
findings with the Gates workshop with the Foundation
Mid-course Foundation and select partners (India/UK/
Presentation US)
- Informal presentation of study
findings thus far
Oct 21st – Nov 10th ‣ Co-create to understand - Co-creation workshops within - Working document capturing
user aspiration and selected locations insights and analysis from
Field Visit 4 desires around sanitation - Engagements with the larger fourth field visit
community, including a bio-
scope presentation, a street
theater production put on by
local school kids, etc.
Nov 11th - Dec 15th ‣ Production of final - Handover of the final study
deliverables output
Project Conclusion - Facilitate end-study workshop
with the Foundation and
partners (India/UK/US)
Visual Timeline of Research Activities
Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
5 12 19 26 2 9 16 23 30 6 13 20 27 4 11 18 25 1 8 15 22 29 6 13 20
Pre-field preparation
Field visit 1
Synthesis
Field visit 2
Synthesis
Field visit 3
Synthesis & mid course
Field visit 4
Project conclusion & handover
End of study workshop