Symbolic Interactions in Design: Managing difference across intermediary objects and discourse.
Year: 2013
Type: article
Abstract: This paper discusses the product design process from a social science perspective. We describe preliminary results from a PhD research pilot study, observing the interactions of 12 postgraduate Product Design students over the course of one semester of independent work. Viewing design activity as a social process, a novel theoretical framework is proposed suggesting the product design process be understood as a trajectory, involving a series of design episodes where physical prototypes, acting as intermediary objects, operate as silent actors in collaboration with other design actors. In order for the trajectory to progress, difference between actors must be managed.
Authors: Arno Verhoeven, Claudia Eckert
Institutions: University of Edinburgh, The Open University
Language: English
Subfield: Mechanical Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2888993424