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2020 | Book

Design, Pragmatism and Dewey Read chapter Read first chapter

Dewey and Design

A Pragmatist Perspective for Design Research

Author: Brian S. Dixon

Publisher: Springer International Publishing

Book Series : Design Research Foundations

Part of: Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik" , Springer Professional "Technik" , Springer Professional "Wirtschaft"

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About this book

Over the last four decades, John Dewey’s pragmatist philosophy has formed an intellectual core in design research, underpinning Donald Schön’s theory of reflective practice, the experiential perspective in HCI and the democratic commitments of participatory design. Taking these existing connections as a starting point, Brian Dixon explores how deeper alignments may be drawn between Dewey’s insights and contemporary design research’s concern with practice, meaning and collaboration. Chapter by chapter, a fresh intellectual approach is revealed, one which recognises the transformative power of doing, making and knowing as a force for positive change in the world. We see that, for Dewey, experience comes first. It connects us to surrounding world and the society of which we are part; good things can happen and new realities are possible—we just have to work for them. The implications for design research are vast. We are offered a new way of understanding designerly knowledge production, as well as the methodological implications of adopting Deweyan pragmatism in design research. Taken as a whole, Dewey and Design not only draws out the value of Dewey’s work for design research but also, crucially, offers a clear articulation of the value of design itself.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter
Chapter 1. Design, Pragmatism and Dewey
Abstract
In this chapter I offer an introduction to the book as a whole. I begin by first exploring the contemporary state of design practice, highlighting a number of recent shifts that have led to the discipline’s transformation. Following on, I offer an overview of the historical trajectory of design research and consider its present configuration as well as some key points of continued contestation. Following on, the relationship between design research and philosophy is briefly examined with reference to the work of Wittgenstein, the phenomenologists and the pragmatists. This leads into a discussion of classical pragmatism in particular. From this, I finally focus in on John Dewey’s work by offering an early, concise outline of his unique brand of pragmatism and its special features. I then move to close the chapter by considering his work in relation to the other, already referenced, popular philosophic perspectives within the field of design research, i.e., the later Wittgenstein and phenomenology.
Brian S. Dixon
Chapter 2. Experiencing as Doing and Undergoing
Abstract
In this chapter I aim to draw some initial alignments between Dewey’s work and design research by focusing in on the theme of experience. To begin, I examine Dewey’s approach to experience in both its general and aesthetic forms. This then leads in to a consideration of how the theme of experience is currently approached within the field of design. Here, some existent points of Deweyan inspiration are identified in user experience and experience-centered design literature. Thereafter, I seek to extend the discussion further by offering an in-depth exploration of Dewey’s theoretical interlinking of experience and nature within his ‘naturalistic metaphysics’—an often-overlooked aspect of his philosophy. The chapter then concludes with a reflection on how, by drawing on Dewey’s work, a more expansive understanding of experience might be established within design.
Brian S. Dixon
Chapter 3. Knowing in Making
Abstract
In this chapter I focus in the subject of knowledge or knowing in design. First, I explore the advance of design research over the last four decades, noting the field’s shift from a science to a practice orientation. Here, particular emphasis is placed on the work of Donald Schön and his concept of an epistemology of practice, a concept which is largely underpinned by Dewey’s philosophy. This leads directly in to a discussion of the recent emergence of research involving practice in design—in other words, research involving practice. At this point, I hone in on some recent methodological formalizations of such an approach, putting forward the argument that these lack a sufficient epistemological justification. As a response, I turn to look at Dewey’s theory of inquiry. Examining the theory, it is shown to offer the beginnings of an epistemological justification for design research involving practice through its articulation the role of practice in research, as well as the practice-research relationship. By outlining and contextualizing the theory of inquiry, a general point of reference is established for the remaining chapters.
Brian S. Dixon
Chapter 4. Making Things Meaningful
Abstract
In this chapter, building on the previous discussion of knowledge/knowing, I turn to consider the themes of meaning and communication in design research. To open, I explore of the work of three key theorists—Roberto Verganti, Klaus Krippendorff and Nathan Crilly—who have each explored these themes in detail. From this, I turn once again to Dewey’s work, looking in particular at his handling of the subjects of language, the imagination and the ‘work of art’. With these positions set out, I then move to consider some of the possible implications for design research, focusing in particular on the ‘work of art’ concept. Ultimately, emphasis is placed on how Dewey’s insights can support the theoretical articulation of meaningfulness in design as well as the communicative value of artifacts in academic design research.
Brian S. Dixon
Chapter 5. Making Things Better
Abstract
In this chapter I shift the focus from questions of epistemology/methodology and turn, instead, to consider the social and political aspects of Dewey’s philosophy and their relation to design practice and research. The chapter opens with an exploration of how Dewey’s work has been drawn upon in participatory design discourse, looking in particular how individuals such as Pelle Ehn, Christopher Le Dantec and Carl DiSalvo as well as a number of related science and technology theorists have appropriated his ‘publics’ concept. From this presentation, I then turn my attention, again, to his original writings, with his stance in relation to democracy and ethics, as well as his melioristic perspective (i.e., the belief that human action can lead to positive change) all being highlighted in turn. The chapter draws to a close with a discussion of how these concepts can be related to contemporary understandings of the democratic/ethical within design practice and research. I conclude with the proposal that Dewey’s work might provide socially/politically motivated design practice and research with a value-based philosophic grounding that gives articulation to some pre-existing concerns.
Brian S. Dixon
Chapter 6. Making as Valuation
Abstract
In this chapter I set out to cohere the book’s broader argument by exploring how a synthesis of Dewey’s key theories relating to knowing, reality, communication and value might be drawn to together to enrich our understanding of knowledge production in design research. In doing so, I turn first to the work of Dewey scholar Ralph Sleeper who has proposed that Dewey’s approach to knowledge emerges through the linking of the theory of inquiry to his metaphysics via his theory of communication. By grouping these aspects together, it is possible to argue that Dewey sees inquiry—or, more particularly, the identification and resolution of problems—as a transformational act which reconfigures the world. Having set out this ‘Deweyan perspective’ on inquiry, I move on to consider the question of value in research by considering his theories of value and of valuation, i.e., how, from his point of view, we might approach the subject of values (qualitative form in situations) and valuation (how we attach value to things). The chapter closes with a discussion of how design research involving practice can be seen to operate similarly, with the ‘making’ of products, services, and experiences ‘remaking’ our reality and, equally, our understanding of ‘the possible’ and ‘the valuable’.
Brian S. Dixon
Chapter 7. Dewey’s Pragmatism as a Philosophy for Practice in Design Research Practice
Abstract
In this chapter I offer a conclusion for the book as a whole at the same time as aiming to trace a forward path. I open with a general summary of the books’ argumentative arc, lining up the key points of the preceding discussions. Next, based on these key points, I explore the potential methodological implications of Dewey’s pragmatism for design research involving practice. The aim here is to draw out the relevant considerations and questions that might guide a project’s advance. Lastly, in the final section, I offer a statement on the potential value of adopting Deweyan pragmatism as a philosophy for design research involving practice and, as such, installing Dewey as an ‘intellectual underwriter’ of ‘designerly knowledge production’.
Brian S. Dixon
Metadata
Title
Dewey and Design
Author
Brian S. Dixon
Copyright Year
2020
Electronic ISBN
978-3-030-47471-3
Print ISBN
978-3-030-47470-6
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-47471-3