Dear Erik,

I'd like to comment on your "going deeper" blog post, but
first I feel I should advertise that I am not a fan of Design
Thinking.  I would say that I am Against Design Thinking,
humbly following in the steps of Feyerabend's Against Method.
A work I note you include in your list.

If you describe some serious and difficult kind of work in a
sufficiently abstract way, and present this using general and
widely used terms, it can be made to look like a way to do
other things, particularly other difficult things.

But such abstract and superficial methods, as they are
sometimes called, or ways of thinking, as we have in the case
of Design Thinking, are ultimately and inevitably too empty to
serve as any real and effective help in doing these other
difficult things.

What I think is important and powerful about designing is
design doing, not the top-level and simplified look of the
form of the thinking.  And, I think that successful design
doing necessarily involves fully engaging with, staying with,
fighting with, revealing in, and enjoying all the details,
complications, difficulties, particularities of each design
job.  And, following Feyerabend, a lot of this power derives
from designing designing a method to do the designing with
each time designing is done.  If you look carefully, I think
you can see this.  But if you take only a top level
superficial view, different designings often look the same.

Still, it's not for me to say that there can be no such thing
as Design Thinking.

However, I would say that your attempt to go deeper does not
look to me likely to work very well.

I agree with you that a wider and good knowledge and
understanding of what people have written about designing and
other relevant and related things is important to develop the
theory and practice of Design Thinking.  But just listing your
personal favourites as you do does not, I think, help this
much.  Nor does adding to this list the favorites of others.

I would say that what is needed, and what it would be good to
have here, is a brief explanation what and how and why each
work you list helps to build the increased depth you seek.
You do annotate your list, but these annotations read more
like fan statements.  These do not, I feel, give a clear idea
of what it is you think each one brings to and contributes to
your "going deeper" project.

If you did this, then we could ask that other PhD-Design posts
do this too, if they are offering additions to your list.
Also, if you did this, we might have a more useful and
productive discussion about if and how particular works do or
don't deepen our Design Thinking.

If Design Thinking really is to be useful for the people it is
often sold to these days, I would say it must be made a great
deal more solid and substantial than it looks today.  This
requires sold and substantial work, not just lists of people's
favourite readings on designing.

Best regards,

Tim

==================================================

On Dec 10, 2012, at 20:50 , Erik Stolterman wrote:

> Hi list
> I have a new blog post where I make the case that design thinking need to
> go deeper. I propose a list readings that I think would support such an
> effort. I am also looking for more suggestions of books. If you find this
> interesting you can go here http://transground.blogspot.com/
> 
> Best
> Erik
> *---------------------------------------------------
> Erik Stolterman
> *http://transground.blogspot.com/
> <http://www.organizationaldesigncompetence.com/>
> 
> 
> -----------------------------------------------------------------
> PhD-Design mailing list  <[log in to unmask]>
> Discussion of PhD studies and related research in Design
> Subscribe or Unsubscribe at https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/phd-design
> -----------------------------------------------------------------


-----------------------------------------------------------------
PhD-Design mailing list  <[log in to unmask]>
Discussion of PhD studies and related research in Design
Subscribe or Unsubscribe at https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/phd-design
-----------------------------------------------------------------