Critical Reflection for Digital Curation Project

Spay and Neuter

Choosing a topic for my digital curation project was not a simple task and I mulled it over for several days before landing on the importance of spaying and neutering. This subject is near and dear to my heart because I have lost a pet due to the devastating ripple effects of not having her spayed at a young age. My intended audience is all current and future pet owners. My goal is to persuade pet owners that spaying and neutering increase longevity in pets and quality of life. If every pet was spayed or neutered then we would not have puppies and kittens, so for those pet parents that are breeders or have working dogs, these animals should be spayed as soon as their reproductive organs are no longer needed. 

I use ethos, logos, and pathos as rhetorical appeals to help persuade my audience. I use ethos throughout my DCP with my professional aesthetic to give credibility, as well as using credible sources and providing credible and verifiable data. I use logos throughout my DCP by appealing to the audience's logic such as it is only logical to spay or neuter to prevent roaming, aggression, unwanted litters, and to reduce the risk of cancer. The pathos present in my DCP is evident from the beginning by discussing Cali's story and using adorable images of animals to appeal to the audience's emotional side. 

My call to action for my audience to take responsibility for the health and well-being of their pets at an early age by spaying and neutering them to reduce unwanted litters (therefore reducing the number of homeless pets in animal shelters), and reducing the risk of cancer and devastating reproductive disorders that can shorten the pet's lifespan. 

Design Principles

I've compiled a list of design principles I've implemented in my DCP. These principles add credibility and professionalism to my project and increase the persuasion power of my call to action. 

1. Alignment (p. 24) - This is coordinating the placement of various design elements in rows, columns, or centered. I've used a left-side alignment of text on all pages throughout my DCP as well as lined up lists in columns such as on the "Why Spay and Neuter" section of my DCP.
2. Five Hat Racks (p. 100) - This is a way to organize information. For my DCP, I've chosen to focus on the continuum organization method of the Five Hat Racks design principle by focusing on the highest priority items first (such as spay and neuter, pyometra, and cancer) before moving onto lower priority items (such as animal shelter populations). 
3. Inverted Pyramid (p. 140) - This design principle is a way to present information in descending order of importance. Similar to the aforementioned Five Hat Racks (p. 100), I've chosen to focus on why you should spay and neuter and why it is important first before continuing onto the risks and benefits of it. 
4. Highlighting (p. 126) - Highlighting is a way to bring attention to a design element such as a graphic or a specific part of text through boldface, italics, color, and font. I've used boldface throughout my DCP to highlight important information. 
   
5. Color (p. 48) - Color is a design principle in which using color can attract attention to specific text, show consistency (p. 56), or add an aesthetic (p. 20) appeal. 
6. Chunking (p. 40) - Chunking is the combination or separation of information into chunks for better readability (p. 198) and legibility (p. 148). I've implemented this principle throughout my DCP in the form of paragraphs and lists of facts or statistics to make the processing of this information easier for my audience. 
7. Layering (p. 146) - This design principle is the process of organizing information into similar groups to enhance readability (p. 198) and better processing for the audience. I've implemented this design principle by keeping cancer-related information together, reproductive information together, and animal shelter information together. 
8. Readability (p. 198) - This is likely the most important design principle for my DCP due to the nature of the information I'm discussing. With my DCP being a very medical-term-heavy subject, it is easy for the audience to get lost in the medical terminology and jargon to the point that the message and call to action goes over their head. I have tried to explain everything into layman's terms for the audience's understanding and convenience to better understand my message and call to action.
   
9. Cognitive Dissonance (p. 46) - Cognitive Dissonance is the feeling of having inconsistent thoughts to behaviors or opinions and seeking to have consistency (p.56) among these. People will try to alleviate the uncomfortable feeling of cognitive dissonance. I've tried to implement this in my DCP by implying if someone loves their pet, they will want the best for their pet, and therefore they will take action to take care of their pet by spaying or neutering with the consequence that they could develop a reproductive disorder or cancer. 
10. Aesthetic Usability Effect (p. 20) - Aesthetic Usability Effect implies that aesthetically pleasing designs are easier to use. I've tried to maintain a professional aesthetic throughout my DCP to give my audience the impression that my website is easy to use (which it is!) and add credibility. 
11. Consistency (p. 56) - Consistency is the design principle that states the usability of something is improved when everything is consistent or similar in multiple ways. I've maintained consistency throughout my DCP by using the same set of fonts throughout my DCP, using a consistent color palette and overall aesthetic (p. 20). 
12. Entry Point (p. 80) - This is the first part of a design that the audience sees. This is the first point they come in contact with that has to hook them and keep them interested in the rest of the design. I've implemented this with an entry point that asks the audience to continue reading to learn how to increase the longevity of their pet and quality of life. 
13. Legibility (p. 148)  - Legibility is the extent to which a text is visually readable (p. 198). I've implemented this throughout my DCP by not using overly distracting background images and using contrasting font and background colors. 

Coming Together

All of the design principles I've chosen to focus on have come together to make my DCP the professional work of multimedia writing that it is. I've chosen these principles because not only are they some of the basics of design, but they are also essential to design. These basic essentials include color, consistency, alignment, legibility, and readability. These may seem to be obvious choices, but without these basic essentials, my DCP would look like a jumbled mess. I want my audience to have a very pleasant experience with my DCP, I want them to see credibility and professionalism. With credibility and professionalism, this is likely to persuade my audience to reflect on the information presented and not only realize my call to action but act on it.