Research Through Design Research Articles

Prototyping with Uncertainties: Data, Algorithms, and Research through Design

Seen both as a resource and an obstacle to clarity, uncertainty is a concept that permeates many areas of design. As the concept gains prominence in HCI, this special issue specifically explores the interplay between uncertainty and prototyping in Research through Design (RTD). We first outline three histories of uncertainty in design, in relation to its philosophical significance, its role in statistical and algorithmic processes, and its importance in prototyping. The convergence of these aspects is crucial as design evolves towards more agentive and entangled systems, introducing challenges such as Design As A Probabilistic Outcome. We then investigate the design spaces for engaging with ‘being uncertain’ that emerge from the papers: from nuancing the relationship between designers and quantitative data to blurring the line between humans, fungi, and algorithms. Finally, we illuminate some preliminary threads for how RtD can navigate and engage with these shifting technological and design landscapes thoughtfully.

An iterative model for the development of an urban development strategy – a case study of Polanica-Zdrój (Poland)

Motives: The current approach to the design of public space in cities is changing due to the global situation, i.e., the climate and health crisis, as manifested by the COVID 2019 pandemic. There is a need to develop and apply new, innovative research methods and techniques that allow both an in-depth knowledge of a given area and the monitoring of the changes that occur in this area. One of the proposals for such a framework is an iterative model based on the results of the analyses carried out during the research and design work using the research through design (RtD) method.Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the applicability of the iterative process model for the development of urban strategy, particularly in terms of designing more resilient urban public spaces.Results: The iterative process model was tested during consultation meetings on the development strategy for the municipality of Polanica-Zdrój. The design concepts developed during the research were an excellent support for illustrating the goals of the spatial policy of the municipality of Polanica-Zdrój as specified in the draft of its development strategy. They became the starting point for the future design process. A project with blue-green infrastructure (BGI) elements was included in the draft development strategy as an exemplary project for the development and modernization of tourism and tourism-related infrastructure of a supra-local, infrastructural and linear nature. A study using the RtD method supported the identification of opportunities and limitations associated with the implementation of BGI in the protected urban areas.

Towards a conceptual design framework for bee botanic gardens: integrating perceptions on urban biodiversity into landscape design processes

Botanic gardens, valued for their live plant collections, have evolved into scientific institutions with roles in conservation, education, research, and public recreation. This study repositions botanic gardens as essential urban habitats enhancing biodiversity, focusing particularly on their support for both European honeybees and Western Australian native bees. This research addresses the intersection of urbanisation and bee conservation by developing a conceptual design for a bee-friendly botanic garden in Yanchep, Western Australia. It employs semi-structured interviews and research through design (RtD) methods to collaborate with local beekeepers, landscape architects, and ecologists. A systematic design framework for a bee-friendly botanic garden in Yanchep, Western Australia was proposed, encompassing the entire design process, from scope to detailed considerations, and aiming to be applicable across other parts of Western Australia and Australia. The research highlights three key findings: the necessity of interdisciplinary collaboration, the importance of defining the garden type and functions early in the design process, and the need for diverse plant selection and nesting options to support native bees.

Uncertainties as Generative Resources in Research through Design: Three Dynamics for Moving in a Design Space

In HCI and design research, it has recently been suggested that, instead of risks and threats, uncertainties can be generative resources. This aligns particularly well with practice-based design research and research through design (RtD), where uncertainties are pervasive and unavoidable due to the approach's interest in open-ended problems, contexts under transformation, and unknown futures. Building on the idea that uncertainties drive design activity, we describe the design process as framing acts where a designer-researcher moves along perceived uncertainties. We identify three dynamics for a generative mode of working with uncertainties that can make designers aware of uncertainties, circle in towards those that appear essential while seeking to avoid others, and stay with those that offer new perspectives. We exemplify these dynamics by drawing from our experiences from three RtD projects and highlight this viewpoint's value in providing new reflective tools for designer-researchers.

Connecting audiences with climate change: Towards humanised and action-focused data interactions

This paper investigates the relationship between design research and humancomputer interaction (HCI) in the context of climate change communication and engagement. We discuss current practices in climate change communication and the decrease in concern and engagement caused by “crisis fatigue”. Through Research through Design (RtD), we set out to investigate data humanism and how users react to climate change data, testing approaches to improve engagement. With this purpose, we designed and evaluated Finding Arcadia, an interactive data story that uses data humanism to shift the dialogue from crisis-focused to action-focused. One study with the original IMF visualisations (N = 17) and two studies in public spaces (N = 12 and N = 64) point to the contextualization of the data and presenting actionable solutions helping in engaging users with climate change issues; help in creating solution-focused narratives and interpreting and relating with climate data. From these results, we derive insights for designing empowering interactive data visualizations for resilient climate change engagement.

Surviving by storytelling – a research through design exploration of online poetry and mental health workshops

ABSTRACT Background The paper explores an online poetry and mental health project titled “Surviving by Storytelling”. The paper reflects on the knowledge which has been iteratively generated during the project and considers the unique challenges to delivering these workshops online. Methods Research through design (RtD) methodology was used to evaluate the project, which involved reflective discussions between workshop facilitators and a review of the artefacts generated throughout the project. Results The results revealed five themes: poetry workshops should be therapeutic, but not psychotherapy; creating a safe space for stories to breathe; facilitators should consider their positioning as writers or experts in relation to attendees; managing the potential harms of poetic exploration; and managing the loss of interpersonal symbols and spaces. Conclusion The provision of online poetry workshops on the topic of mental health can present unique complexities and the results from this paper can help to inform future practice.

Transformative Impact of Technology in Landscape Architecture on Landscape Research: Trends, Concepts and Roles

The role of technology in landscape architecture (TLA) has significantly evolved since the 19th century, increasingly integrating with digital tools and technologies in the 21st century. Despite its growing importance, there is a notable deficiency in the scholarly literature regarding the progression of TLA trends and their interplay with the core domains and research themes within landscape research. The influence of TLA on landscape research remains ambiguous, especially concerning its ability to generate new knowledge and impact design and sustainability practices. Furthermore, there is a critical need to delineate how TLA differs from allied general digital technology tools and to identify specific specializations that are emerging within the TLA field. To explore the above gaps, this study utilized a mixed methods approach involving secondary data from peer-reviewed publications, primary data from the archival research of winning projects, and expert interviews based on the two major research types of “Research through Design (RTD)” and “Research for Design (RFD)” to explore the TLA’s contribution. This research is significant as it: (1) identified the trend of TLA; (2) conceptualized the TLA, and (3) identified its role in relation to the core domains and research themes of landscape research.

Enhancing prompt perception in dementia: a comparative study of mixed reality cue modalities.

Dementia impacts millions worldwide and is challenging individuals' ability to engage in daily activities. Active living is crucial in mitigating dementia's neurodegenerative effects, yet people with dementia often struggle to initiate and complete tasks independently. Technologies offer promising solutions to engage people with dementia in activities of active living and improving their quality of life through prompting and cueing. It is anticipated that developments in sensor and wearable technologies will result in mixed reality technology becoming more accessible in everyday homes, making them more deployable. The possibility of mixed reality technologies to be programmed for different applications, and to adapt them to different levels of impairments, behaviours and contexts, will make them more scalable. The study aimed to develop a better understanding of modalities of prompts that people with dementia perceive successfully and correctly in mixed reality environments. It investigated interactions of people with dementia with different types of visual (graphics, animation, etc.) and sound (human voice, tones, etc.) prompts in mixed reality technologies. We used the Research through Design (RtD) method in this study. This paper describes the findings from the user research carried out in the study. We conducted observation studies with twenty-two people with dementia playing games on off-the-shelf mixed reality technologies, including both Augmented Reality (HoloLens, ArKit on iPhone) and Augmented Virtuality (Xbox Kinect and Osmo) technologies. The interactions with the technologies during the gameplay were video recorded for thematic analysis in Noldus Observer XT (version 16.0) for successful and correct perception of prompts. A comparison of the probability estimates of correct perception of the prompts by people with dementia suggests that human voice, graphic symbols and text are the most prominently perceived modalities of prompts. Feedback prompts for every action performed by people with dementia on the technology are critical for successful perception and should always be provided in the design. The study has resulted in recommendations and guidelines for designers to design prompts for people with dementia in mixed-reality environments. The work lays the foundation for considering mixed reality technologies as assistive tools for people with dementia, fostering discussions on their accessibility and inclusive design in technology development.

From biodesigners to designers in lab: testing the nuances of an emerging profession through autoethnography

Abstract Biodesign is emerging as a radical design approach with great potential for the ecological turn, finally endorsed by some first academic courses providing designers with hybrid skills to embrace scientific disciplines. However, the resulting professional figure, the biodesigner, still needs to be better defined in the academic and grey literature, also considering the different and multiple facets that working between design and science may entail. This study presents four case studies of research through design (RTD), addressed by the author as an autoethnographic form of inquiry to clarify the roles a biodesigner could assume, emphasising the differences in methods, tools and workplaces, which inevitably affect the Biodesign outcomes. The author analyses her role as a biodesigner and designer in lab, working in teams and environments requiring different degrees of interdisciplinarity. Far from adopting a speculative approach, the RTDs focus on sustainable Material Design and Biodesign solutions that might be feasible in the short run, aiming to test the designer’s abilities in enriching scientific research and investigating the role and contribution designers can play in scientific contexts of different intensities. The study demonstrates the possibility of a reciprocal knowledge transfer between design and science, highlighting the potential of the designerly way of knowing in bringing innovation to the scientific field.

How Can We Design Privacy-Friendly Apps for Children? Using a Research through Design Process to Understand Developers' Needs and Challenges

Mobile apps used by children often make use of harmful techniques, such as data tracking and targeted advertising. Previous research has suggested that developers face several systemic challenges in designing apps that prioritise children's best interests. To understand how developers can be better supported, we used a Research through Design (RtD) method to explore what the future of privacy-friendly app development could look like. We performed an elicitation study with 20 children's app developers to understand their needs and requirements. We found a number of specific technical requirements from the participants about how they would like to be supported, such as having actionable transnational design guidelines and easy-to-use development libraries. However, participants were reluctant to adopt these design ideas in their development practices due to perceived financial risks associated with increased privacy in apps. To overcome this critical gap, participants formulated socio-technical requirements that extend to other stakeholders in the mobile industry, including parents and marketplaces. Our findings provide important immediate and long-term design opportunities for the HCI community, and indicate that support for changing app developers' practices must be designed in the context of their relationship with other stakeholders.

Optimization of Landscape Spatial Configuration and Form for Thermal Comfort: A Case Study of Urban Square, Shanghai

Outdoor public spaces that provide a comfortable microclimate significantly contribute to urban livability. However, more elaborate investigations are needed to enhance the research-based design of landscape spatial form for optimal thermal comfort performance. This study aimed to optimize the morphological design of urban squares considering summer and winter microclimates by integrating multiple landscape elements of vegetation, waterbodies, buildings, and ground. The built environment microclimate simulation and validation of multi-physics coupling were conducted for thermal comfort, planar heterogeneity diagramming, and spatial typology identification. Further, research through design (RtD) was applied to reconstruct various spatial configurations and orientation forms to compare the relative thermal comfort areas of these geometrical prototypes in the target time period and square core zone. Among the landscape types, two identified spatial types for achieving better thermal comfort are the opening of a windward enclosure structure (ECS) that draws wind into the square in summer and an ECS without a windward opening that creates a more extended wind protection area in winter. Moreover, results of RtD show that the prototype with the smallest orientation angle to the prevailing wind direction has the most optimized thermal comfort during summer, while the form with a smaller angle to the prevailing wind direction is more favorable in winter. These findings provide methodological guidance for climate-adapted landscape square form optimization.

Remember the Future

The starting point of this study is the prehistoric “teganoschemo” archaeological find of the Syros-Keros civilization in the Aegean Sea. These artifacts have been causing debates among archaeologists as their raison d'être is still contested. The aim of this study is to bring a prehistoric ontological model of design and craft to contemporary design practices. In order to explore such alternative ontologies, we turn to the past and address themes of death and life embodied in these prehistoric artifacts. As we leave Modernity behind and transition towards Sustainment, a new ontology for Design is necessary. By understanding the ontological framework of prehistoric designers, we aim to create propositional artifacts that exemplify what design can be. The propositional artifacts created act as different phases in a research-through design process that aims to investigate how design operates within an alternative system of values.

Alienated Serendipity and Reflective Failure: Exploring Queer Game Mechanics and Queerness in Games via Queer Temporality

Queerness can help redefine interactive technologies and re-conceptualize their design beyond cisheteronormativity. Recently, games have emerged as promising avenues for exploring queerness. In this research-through-design (RtD) effort, we advance queer explorations in games by leveraging queer temporality to evoke and explore feelings of alienation and isolation in a horror game called You're Going To Be Late. We further engage with queer individuals who playtest our game and participate in focus groups to discuss how queer they felt our game was and what they regard as queer game mechanics. Participants had varying experiences while playing our game, ranging from serendipity and wonder to alienation and confusion. The focus groups described queer game mechanics as queer modes of play and often tapped into gender representation. Finally, we show how including and amplifying queer voices in discursive efforts around interactive technology design has implications for transformative and critical reflections that can broadly benefit game design and HCI research.

Research through design in urban and landscape design practice

ABSTRACT This study takes stock on how research through design (RTD) is interpreted in urban and landscape design practice in relation to the scholarly meaning of RTD. The results indicate that the term ‘RTD’ in Dutch practice largely refers to the typical procedures and resources of a practical design process. This interpretation differs from definitions of scholarly RTD which have more focus on the rigid testing of design alternatives. Such a scholarly RTD approach is advisable to ensure the validity and robustness of design products. This study recommends that this approach to RTD is adopted in urban and landscape design practice.

Quality in research through design projects: Recommendations for evaluation and enhancement

There is no consensus on how to judge the quality of Research Through Design (RTD) projects, which makes them difficult to plan and evaluate. In response, this study provides a framework for discussing and positioning RTD projects in terms of quality. It draws on theory on research quality and an original analysis of 25 RTD papers to identify how known quality indicators are applied. Our findings show that most papers align with these indicators, especially those associated with pragmatist research. Nonetheless, there are opportunities to enrich discussions on quality in RTD and we propose recommendations to this end. These recommendations can support more mindful and transparent project planning and reporting, and better assessment of and discussions on quality.

NOVICE DESIGNERS TACKLE AND REFLECT ON THEIR PROCESS USING THE DESIGNERLY ACTIVITY THEORY

AbstractSchön used the metaphor of the swamp and mountain to express the divide between the problems tackled by practitioners and scientists. This research is concerned about the same persisting dilemma between design practice and design theory. In an attempt to discuss this dilemma, we propose to explore research through design (RtD) as a privileged approach where novice designers gain knowledge as practitioners and as researchers. Being aware that RtD approach has received criticisms regarding validity, bias and reliability, we put forward a set of theoretical tools allowing designers to simultaneously proceed with design activity and data gathering processes. To do so, the designerly activity theory framework was presented and explained to two novice designers. They were asked to use the theory's model during an internship project experience, to record their daily actions and later, to proceed with analysis of gathered data. Doing so, we gained a clearer interpretation of the impacts of using a theoretical model as a complement for research through design. We discuss the depth of the participants' reflections, the awareness to less noticeable components, and the enriched dialog between practice and theory.

Six principles for the design of better networking events

Networking events are seen as an essential activity for the establishment and maintenance of professional connections. Despite their ubiquity and perceived importance, networking events are often ineffective and unenjoyable. Suggestions for the improvement of networking outcomes typically focus on event selection or participant capabilities. In this article, we posit that greater success can be achieved by improving the design of networking events themselves. We adopt a research-through-design (RTD) approach to derive the design features that explain the success of Wok+Wine, a networking event that consistently delivers positive functional and experiential outcomes across a range of cultural and organizational contexts. From a synthesis of these design features, we derive six generalizable design principles that can support managers in the creation of better networking events as well as in the analysis and selection of existing ones.

Slave Voyages: Reflections on Data Sculptures.

This pictorial presents the development of a data sculpture, followed by our reflections inspired by Research through Design (RtD) and Dahlstedt's process-based model of artistic creativity. We use the notion of negotiation between concept and material representation to reflect on the ideation, design process, production, and the exhibition of "Slave Voyages" - a set of data sculptures that depicts slave traffic from Africa to the American continent. The work was initially produced as an assignment on physicalization for the Design course at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Our aim is to open discussion on material representation and negotiation in the creative process of data physicalization.

Wind-Based Parametric Design in the Changing Climate

In the climate change era, the tendency to utilize computer-aided strategies in architectural design enables the incorporation of the influences of ambient conditions into the design process. Such a design strategy can consequently contribute to creating nature-based, sustainable architectural, and urban solutions. In this paper, it will be shown that the built environment can be designed, already from the first concepts, to affect and consequentially improve the local wind microclimate by addressing the unfavorable wind effects and proposing solutions for transforming them into an advantage. Utilizing the iterative Research Through Design (RTD) approach, the proposed data-driven wind-oriented shape optimization is introduced in a case study located in Stockholm. Three complex architectural shapes, resulting from the wind-oriented design approach, are parametrically designed in Grasshopper for Rhino and subsequently analyzed in a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) plug-in Swift for Grasshopper.

Reframing loneliness through the design of a virtual reality reminiscence artefact for older adults

Loneliness among older adults is a major societal problem. Research shows that feelings of loneliness are often linked to a lack of social relationships and social connectivity. Therefore, most loneliness interventions are focussing on strengthening and expanding the social life of older adults. Lonely older adults can also experience a lack of meaning in life, which can be countered by meaning-making interventions. Literature provides minimal insight into the design rationale of those interventions. This paper aims to provide insight into the design rationale of a Virtual Reality (VR) artefact for older adults with feelings of loneliness. The artefact focuses on retrieving meaningful memories through reminiscence. The needs and context of the participants were mapped by Research through Design (RtD), and a prototype was designed and tested. Preliminary test results suggest that VR-reminiscence can promote the well-being of lonely older adults, as well as the participatory design approach itself. VR-reminiscence triggered in-depth conversations about past, present, and future life. Based on the results of this study, it is recommended to design loneliness interventions beyond merely social relationships and social connectivity through designing tailored interventions that focus on the individual experience of loneliness by engaging older adults in the design process.