Case study: Intervention condition completer

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of 420 4. An approach to problem solving that involves the simultaneous creation and evaluation of multiple alternatives

5. The ability to add or maintain value as pieces are integrated into a whole 6. The ability to establish purposeful relationships among elements of a solution and between the solution and its context

7. The ability to use form to embody ideas and to communicate their value”

It is noticeable that some of these competencies refer to different and probably uneven combinations of knowledge, skill and/or attitudes. In competency point 3 for instance, modelling and visualising is a strong component as opposed to competency point 4 in which the emphasis seems to be on an attitude (opting for a particular approach to problem solving). It is also noticeable that the author does not make explicit any particular knowledge designers might need in order to be “competent”.

Bernhard Burdek describes design competence differently, outlining a group of tasks which designers need to “fulfil”, instead of directly making a definition of designer capabilities. He states that designers should:

 “visualize technological progress

 simplify or make possible the use and operation of products (hardware or software)

 make transparent the connections between production, consumption and recycling

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 promote and communicate services, but also – pursued energetically enough

 help to prevent products that are senseless” (Burdek [2005] p. 16).

These tasks suggest that designers might need certain skills, e.g. visualising, simplifying processes, promotion and communication. Also, they imply that designers should have certain attitudes or behaviours, for example, they should “pursue energetically”. However, Burdek’s list seems to be too generic, not comprehensive and does not make explicit any knowledge designers might need in order to design.

Rita Sue Siegel [2008] perhaps offers one of the most comprehensive lists of designers’ competencies. She proposes 3 main groups of designers’ core skills:

Creative, Cognitive and Management Skills. She also offers a list of ideal designer personal attributes. Although extensive, Siegel’s list makes no distinction between knowledge, skills and behaviours. For example, in her list of Core Creative Skills some of its items are actual skills e.g. “Hand Sketching”, but others refer to the type of knowledge designers need to have: for instance, having a “repertoire of colours, materials, finishes”. Also, other items do not refer to knowledge or skill but to behaviours, e.g. “considers environmental sustainability”.

From a different angle, Cross [1998] explains several competencies and attitudes which designers need according to his notion of the characteristics of design. Cross argues that design is rhetorical; therefore, a designer needs to be

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of 420 able to build arguments. He says that design is exploratory, hence designers need to have an attitude of discovery and be ready to jump into the unknown, actively seeking for the not known. He also says that design is emergent, so designers need to be flexible and adaptive; and that it is both opportunistic and abductive, so designers should be able to abduct.^. Cross also states that design is reflective, therefore designers need to be able to reflect and to utilise tools that facilitate reflection e.g. sketching.¹² The author also propose that design is ambiguous, so designers need to be able to be divergent and convergent; and that design is risky, so designers need to be willing to take risks and able to commit in the presence of uncertainty.

It seems that for Cross, the nature of design activity is such that it is just as important for designers to develop tools as it is to develop an attitude and disposition towards the way they deal with issues. Cross seems to characterise designers by their competencies and attitudes but, like other authors, does not put much emphasis on the knowledge that designers may need to perform adequately.

It is apparent that authors prefer to emphasise skills and attitudes in describing designer competence, and not to put too much emphasis on knowledge. However, a taxonomy of design domains knowledge developed by

12 Cross [1998] identifies sketching as a tool for reflection, which enables designers to “handle different levels of

abstraction simultaneously”. Sketches “enable identification and recall of relevant knowledge...assist problem structuring through solution attempts... and...promote the recognition of emergent features and properties...”

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of 420 Ken Friedman [2000] provides an extensive list of things that designers ought to know. Friedman establishes four main domains:

 Domain 1 Skills for learning and leading

 Domain 2 The Human World: the human being, the company, the society, the world and theory basics

 Domain 3 The Artefact: product development, design and

manufacturing

 Domain 4 The Environment: natural environment, built environment, architecture, interior and installation.

Friedman argues that designers need to develop skills, knowledge and awareness in all these areas, but he does not explain the nature of such skills and does not give any details about which areas need to be well known or of which designers should be aware.

From a different perspective, Eckert et al. [2010], while examining “the experience of being a designer and doing design” in a series of workshops involving practitioners from a variety of design disciplines, identify several common aspects related to the design process and the project such as the role of materials and tools in design activity, the design practitioner’s relationship with users and customers, and the use of representations as communication tools. These aspects serve to highlight the importance of the design process and the project in design practice, and reveal how knowledge of the design process is a fundamental part of design competence. In order to build a

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of 420 complete description of designer capabilities, a table has been included which summarises the competencies of designers (Table 4.1). Competencies have been split according to the generally accepted traits: knowledge, skills and attitude/behaviour. This table will be used as a reference for understanding what competencies are relevant for collaboration with scientists, and to examine if there are other competencies that have not been made explicit or identified which are also relevant. The table will also help to compare designers’ competencies with those of scientists, to determine how they affect collaboration between them.

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of 420 Table 4.1 Table of Design Competence

In document Physical activity and smoking abstinence in young people (Page 164-172)