Screen shot from the worrydolls app.
This week I’m reviewing Worrydolls. The developer, Peter Wieben, struggled with anxiety and depression growing up and developed this app to help people manage similar struggles. The app is modeled after the Guatemalan tradition of worry dolls (a.k.a. trouble dolls or muñeca quitapena) in which children would tell their worries to tiny, handmade dolls and place them under their pillow at night with the hope that the doll would grant them to wisdom to eliminate their worry by the morning (Common Hope, 2018).
Intended Use: The app is intended for health/wellness.
Target Audience: The app is listed as being appropriate for ages four and up. The app is primarily text-based and would be best suited for users age seven and up.
Usability: The user is presented with an image of a worry doll and given the prompt “I will worry for you. tell me what to worry about.” The user can they write a free response about whatever they are worried about. Users can use multiple dolls to represent each worry and track these over time. If something is no longer a worry, they can mark the worry as finished.
Cost: The app is free.
Technical Requirements: Available for iOS and Android.
Pro’s: The app is simple, has no advertising, and has a charming visual aesthetic. It is also available in English, Dutch, Chinese, and Turkish.
Con’s: This app walks the line between cultural appropriation and cultural appreciation. Cultural appropriation is the act of taking an aspect of a culture other than one’s own, without permission/consent, or out of its cultural context for the purpose of making money, gaining popularity, for personal interest, or aesthetic purposes. Cultural appreciation, on the other hand, includes practices intended to broaden one’s perspective and connect with others cross culturally. The primary differences between the two are consent and context. For example, art therapists who borrow from indigenous traditions, such as making dream catchers with clients or use these images in marketing, without considering or acknowledging the cultural significance of these objects could be considered appropriating native culture. The worrydolls app could be improved by having a section that acknowledges the Guatemalan tradition of the worry doll.
Is it worth it? The app may be worth your time if you struggle with anxiety. It could be a useful adjunct to traditional art making (e.g. making one’s own worry doll).