Dynamics of research through design

In this paper, we investigate Research through Design at a micro-level, by addressing the dynamic interplay of research and design as they unfold throughout a design process. As our principal case, we consider the design of a three-dimensional projection installation, a process that unfolded over a one-year period. We analyse material collected from 18 key events during the process, in order to identify the ongoing dynamics. Based on the analysis, we establish how the interplay evolves in a complex structure, where the design and research interests continuously couple, interweave, and decouple. Last, the paper discusses what facilitates the three different kinds of dynamics.

[1]  Kim Halskov,et al.  CAVI: an interaction design research lab , 2011, INTR.

[2]  Martin Ludvigsen,et al.  Designing for Social Interaction , 2006 .

[3]  Kim Halskov,et al.  Inspiration card workshops , 2006, DIS '06.

[4]  Peter Dalsgaard,et al.  Research in and through design: an interaction design research approach , 2010 .

[5]  Kim Halskov,et al.  MAPS FOR DESIGN REFLECTION , 2008 .

[6]  Paul R. Carlile,et al.  A Pragmatic View of Knowledge and Boundaries: Boundary Objects in New Product Development , 2002, Organ. Sci..

[7]  Kim Halskov,et al.  Reflective design documentation , 2012, DIS '12.

[8]  Johan Redström,et al.  Lab, Field, Gallery, and Beyond , 2008 .

[9]  John Zimmerman,et al.  Research through design as a method for interaction design research in HCI , 2007, CHI.

[10]  Susan Leigh Star,et al.  Institutional Ecology, `Translations' and Boundary Objects: Amateurs and Professionals in Berkeley's Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, 1907-39 , 1989 .

[11]  Lars Mathiassen,et al.  Mapping situations within a system development project , 1985, Inf. Manag..

[12]  Thomas Binder,et al.  Experimental design research: genealogy, intervention, argument , 2007 .

[13]  Kim Halskov,et al.  3d projection on physical objects: design insights from five real life cases , 2011, CHI.

[14]  Olav W. Bertelsen,et al.  Elements of a theory of design artefacts - a contribution to critical systems development research , 1998, DAIMI PB.

[15]  Johan Redström,et al.  Exemplary Design Research , 2006 .

[16]  John Zimmerman,et al.  An analysis and critique of Research through Design: towards a formalization of a research approach , 2010, Conference on Designing Interactive Systems.

[17]  D. Schoen.  The Reflective Practitioner , 1983 .

[18]  Kim Halskov,et al.  Using 3-D projection to bring a statue to life , 2011, INTR.

[19]  Kim Halskov,et al.  Projections on museum exhibits: engaging visitors in the museum setting , 2010, OZCHI '10.

[20]  Muriel Zimmerman,et al.  Design Research Through Practice: From the Lab, Field, and Showroom , 2011, IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication.

[21]  J. Forlizzi,et al.  From Design Research to Theory : Evidence of a Maturing Field , 2009 .