A late question and comment to Charles Burnette and others concerning the
user-discussion.
In my Ph.D. study on interior design I work on a theory of the meeting
between user and architecture based on Grounded Research, collecting data in
the interior of ten apartments. In other words: doing "blue sky" research,
but not using "latter day anthropology".
My question is: Does anyone know some good literature on the development of
the way designers has used "users". The deveolment in userstudies, research,
but also the overall view of the user. I have a picture inside my head of
the way the designer has treated the "user" during the last 50.years, but
need some proof!. 
My picture of the development is a picture of the change from a focus on a
normal, neutral body, with normal measueres and normal needs and wants,
which you could measure, predict and form via your design, to an acceptance
of the fact that there are no such thing as a normal or standard use, but a
lot of individuals who do strange, and sometimes even wrong things, in their
use of design.
If the picture is right or have I misunderstood the whole point of
postmodern micro-storytelling? And is a change in the treatment of the user
a purely theoretical thing, which has nothing to do whith dailylife
housing-design?
The thing is, when I try to explain my focus and theory, I typically get two
reactions from established architects and designers:
1. I should help the users, instead of just observe them (in other words:
help the poor user to to use/decorate the house correctly. Correctly from an
architectural point of view) and
2. I should not criticize the architects so much.(The focus on what people
do in their use of architecture is apparently very provocative and
negative).
Until now I have found a chapter in "Words and Buildings" of Adrian Forty
about the "user", which is very useful, and a book about the development in
the architectural theory in Sweeden, ( Sandström, Ulf : Arkitektur och
social ingenjörskonst. Studier i svensk arkitektur- och bostadsforskning.
Universitetet i Linköping), but could anyone on the list recommend some
other litterature about the development in the use of the user and the use
of userresearch.
Pernille G. Palsbro