To see eye to eye: the role of visual representations in building shared mental models in design teams

Abstract

Whereas design team mental models do not differ significantly from team mental models in other domains, task mental models in design are different in that they are contingent on visual representations. To design a tangible entity that must be specified in terms of form, size, materials, colours and so on, the team conducts a search in which partial candidate-solutions are generated and manipulated, while team members discuss and reason about them. Representations in the form of rapid sketches serve as artifacts that represent the designed entity in its various phases of developments. The sketches are used to communicate ideas and concepts, to negotiate features of possible solutions, and ultimately – to converge into one the mental models of individual designers, who endeavor to see the problem and its solution eye to eye and finally espouse a shared team task mental model which is embedded in agreed-upon representations.