Live Study · Personal · USC MS Applied Psychology · 2026 · Ongoing

What happens when the portfolio itself is the research instrument?

1
live study running
6
pages deployed
10
tools integrated

The ask

Can a portfolio function as a live research study, collecting real behavioral data from visitors and demonstrating UX principles through the medium itself?

My role

Researcher · Designer · Developer

Timeline

2026 · Ongoing

Skills used in this study — tap to explore

“A portfolio that only describes research skills is a resume. This one practices them — and sends you an email to prove it.”

Concept · This Portfolio · 2026

Key findings

Design decisionIntentional

The medium is the message

Most portfolios describe UX skills through static case studies. This one practices them through its own design. The opt-in mechanism is a study instrument. The personalized email flow demonstrates data-driven communication. The portfolio is the work.

Deployed April 2026 · Live data collection ongoing · thegrateful.dev

Technical findingConfirmed

A researcher who can ship changes the conversation

Building the full stack — database schema, behavioral tracking, AI-generated email copy, condition-based personalization, and production deployment — is not just a developer skill. Understanding how data flows from opt-in to inbox changes what research questions you can ask and what answers you can trust.

Next.js · Supabase · Vercel · Claude API · Resend · GitHub · thegrateful.dev

Live findingOngoing

This page is part of the study

You are currently a participant. If you opted in via the form on any case study page, your visit is in the dataset and you will receive a personalized follow-up email based on your role and how you engaged with the page. The /insights page shows live aggregate data about how people engage with this portfolio.

Visit /insights to see the live data · Email follow-up sent within 24 hours of opt-in

Research process

Tap a card to flip it. Use arrows to move through the deck.

01 / 06

01
tap to flip ↻

The portfolio as stimulus

Research framing

Most portfolios present work. This one conducts it. The portfolio is the stimulus. Visitor behavior is the data. Every design decision, from the opt-in placement to the email flow, is a hypothesis about how researchers communicate credibility.

Research framingtap to flip ↻

What I did

Most portfolios present work. This one conducts it. The portfolio is the stimulus. Visitor behavior is the data. Every design decision, from the opt-in placement to the email flow, is a hypothesis about how researchers communicate credibility.

Why

A researcher who only describes their skills is making a claim. A researcher whose portfolio demonstrates those skills in real time is providing evidence.

What it unlocked

A concept that is both useful and genuinely differentiating: a live UXR study where the researcher is also the designer and developer.

n = 90 · Data collection ongoing through summer 2026. Findings will update as the sample grows. Last analysis: April 2026.

Get your results

Want to know what your condition revealed about how you respond to design mechanics?

No spam. One email with your personalized findings.

Next project

Gamblification uniquely destroys trust — gamification does not

→