Grappling with Diversity in Research Through Design
Boudewijn Boon (TU Delft - Form and Experience)
S.E. Baha (TU Delft - DesIgning Value in Ecosystems)
A. Singh (TU Delft - QRD/Kouwenhoven Lab)
Frithjof E. Wegener (TU Delft - Responsible Marketing and Consumer Behavior)
MC Rozendaal (TU Delft - Human Information Communication Design)
Pieter Jan Stappers (TU Delft - Codesigning Social Change)
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Abstract
Since its introduction, Research through Design (RtD) has taken on a wide variety of forms. Currently, there is a lack of clarity about what connects and separates different RtD approaches. Several attempts have been made to clarify these matters, often in the form of a top-down categorization. Here we start on a different path, one that is open for different points of view and grounded in the ongoing concerns and needs of RtD practitioners. Over a two-month period, we engaged a local research community in weekly discussions about RtD in their work. Thoughts and questions were posted on a dedicated wall-space, maintained, and clustered over the weeks. As a result, we identified 11 themes that indicate concerns among participants about RtD. We suggest the themes can help in articulating different RtD ‘styles’ and ‘genres’, and believe this should be a collaborative and bottom-up effort that crosses disciplinary and institutional boundaries.
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