STEDEX '10

In recent years, ‘practice-led’ design researchers have developed techniques that have enabled them to gain insights and develop holistic thinking about products, services, environments and systems. These include exploring both new possibilities Bowen 2009) and the constraints of a given situation (Rodriguez et al. 2006).

Design researchers such as Squires (2002:105) and Rodriguez et al (2006) have demonstrated ‘user innovation toolkits’ (Von Hippel 2002) that operated by incorporating the development of sketches. Prototypes have provided users with freedom of experience in sharing their thoughts and aspirations, a strategy which could be useful in informing the design development stage. Further, Rust (2004) explained that designers have the ability to imagine new circumstances and could creatively ‘design’ a practical environment for people to experience a ‘new world’.

Designing and doing research formed the main components of the methodology for this investigation. In general, methods and techniques of integrating design into the research process or designing research are generating a great debate amongst the academic community and design thinkers (Glanville 1999, Burdick 2003). However, in current design research situation, they have proven to become useful and effective research tools among design researchers (Bowen 2009, Marchand and Walker 2009, Evans 2009, Rahman and Rust 2009, Rahman 2010). Framework for this investigation is generally built up into two (2) main components which are continuously interrelated and contributed to each other. The first part focusses more to an account of how products interact with stakeholders in their cultural environment.

The second part focusses on the process of developing a specific design for culture which can be used to analyse and evaluate the understanding that was gained from the earlier stage. The social inquiry works involving stakeholders will directly inform the design development process which in return would assist in the continuous social inquiry works.

This element from “practice-led” design research approach is employed to provide an arena for investigating how stakeholders respond to the conceptual designs of cultural products and explore techniques that designers might use to work in this area.

Here, the design work is a continuous process alongside the social inquiry and responding to insights emerging from it. In turn, a set of conceptual designs were developed in the practical design work and are being used as provocative objects (conceptual designs) bridging users’ cultural determined needs and inspiration to products while the programme of interviews and group works (design workshop and discussions) proceeds. This conceptual design work continues to be a continuous process alongside the social inquiry and responding to insights emerging from it. In turn, a speculative conceptual design has been used as instrument in this research as the programme of

Both processes, designing and doing social inquiry is more likely to provide good results for this investigation. Thus, in the designing process the output could only reflect to the possibilities but with no absolute guarantee since this design work is validated by the social inquiry work and its output.