China’s economy is growing. It has been said that “the question like ‘how to do business with Chinese people’ have occupied the minds of international business people who are planning to enter China.” (Fan & Zigang, 2004). Sweden as a country which listed China as its largest trading partner in Asia and a priority country in Sweden's export strategy, has a need to gain understanding about guanxi –an important concept in Chinese business culture. In this thesis, the author will present the development of three exercises inspired by design methods (role play, visualization and customer journey map) which aim to help Swedish business managers to learn guanxi in an experiential way. It includes the challenges the design team went through, how did they solve it and what are the latest version of the exercises looks like. The main challenges presented in this thesis are: how to embed specific knowledge smoothly into exercise; how to set up the role of facilitator(s); and how to increase the level of satisfaction for the users. Those challenges are not only specific to our project, but also could be inspirational for other people (e.g. designers, business culture scholars and so on) who want to create similar exercises or looking for new ways to deliver the knowledge about cross-cultural business communication.

Young children in the United States are widely using technology at ages 3 and 4, but to date there are no well documented participatory design methods for including this age group in the development of technologies. A few attempts at using methods designed for older children were unsuccessful. To address this gap in methods, this research developed Play-based Design, a novel participatory design method inspired by make-believe play in the style of Tools of the Mind, an evidence-based preschool curriculum. Play-based Design first sets the context for play and design through stories. It then enables children to plan play by selecting roles and contribute their ideas as they act and speak during make-believe play activities in which they interact with other children, voice agents, adult facilitators, and generic props. This research includes four sets of design sessions with 3-4 year old children. The first provided the design of StoryCarnival a web-based app to set up Tools of the Mind style play. The second set of design sessions led my research team through the development of voice agents to support Tools of the Mind style play as it happens. These two sets of sessions provided inspiration and insight for using StoryCarnival combined with voice agents to support design activities for technologies with physical and social components. The last two sets of sessions gave me an opportunity to understand whether Play-based Design could be applied to obtain design requirements from children for technology unrelated to make-believe play by focusing on obtaining ideas for Internet-of-Things applications in the home. The research presented in this dissertation required an interdisciplinary journey through child development theories, storytelling for children, graphic design, qualitative methods, software development, and related approaches from the literature. Participant observations, group discussions, and video analysis were used to collect and analyze data. Results from the last two sets of design sessions focused on obtaining ideas for Internet-of-Things technologies to provide evidence that Play-based Design can enable 3-4 year old children to contribute their ideas to the design of technologies. More specifically, in this dissertation, I provide supporting evidence for my thesis statement: “When applied to participatory design sessions with young children, Play-based Design can: (1) allow young children to express their ideas through make-believe play, which is a developmentally appropriate activity; (2) enable children to act out design ideas or verbally express them by conversing with researchers or voice agents; (3) support fluid communication between adult researchers and children; and (4) inform the design of technologies that facilitate activities that have social and physical components (e.g. tangible user interfaces, voice agents, IoT).”

My research is focused upon what industrial designers can contribute in order to mitigate environmental problems often caused by their designs. The intent is to propose a procedure to integrate eco-effectiveness at the beginning of the design process, to consider it at each stage of the product’s lifecycle, and to measure that product’s environmental performance in order to make informed design decisions. At each stage the designer can follow this flexible process, which is intended to work in conjunction with individual creative methods while prioritizing the need for eco-effectiveness. The goal is to develop a procedure that is simple enough for designers to use every day and that could also provide means of verification, rather than relying on assumptions and good intentions. I acknowledge that efforts from a single discipline are not enough. In order to address the environmental challenges we face today, collaboration among disciplines will be necessary, as well as a change of behavior and attitudes towards consumption. This is my contribution. / text

The design project presented here explores the relation between body and a garment. It is concerned simultaneously with the fundamental notion of a garment and the act of dressing. The project can be contextualized as a constructive design research since the aim does not involve analysis of the material world nor rational problem solving. Rather, the aim is to create new imaginary realities, and visualize them. As a startup method to construct a theory, workshops were set up using life size vertical action collages, in order to integrate the act of dressing with the aim to develop a new construction method. Two actors, one of them myself, were used to provide a greater diversity of perspectives and interpretations. A method of dressing which involved interlocking the body - limbs and waist - with vertically hanging textiles, was developed through the search for the holes, that constitute the infrastructure of a garment. The results are both artefacts, that visualize the new garment construction as well as a new routine of dressing through the novel method of garment construction. Dressing a body in textiles through interlocking which results in an intimate connection between body and the garment as the body reacts to the garment and vice versa. The motivation for exploring the act of dressing is an urge to reflect upon the fast evolving society of today which tends to emphasize a static relationship between body and a garment.

Consideration of products' ergonomic qualities is one important component for successful product development. Product designers engaged in the core activity of product development need methods that support the consideration of ergonomics along with other product requirements. This thesis aims to address these needs. The first part of the thesis investigates how people working within product development organisations communicate with and about users of their products. The general need for methods to support communication of user aspects in product development is identified through formal interviews with product developers and a review of the management, ergonomics and design literature. The second part of the thesis studies the factors which affect the integration of ergonomics in product design. Supportive methods, including User Characters, for evoking user consideration among designers together with Overlapping methods for scheduling ergonomics evaluation in product design processes are introduced and argued. The third part of the thesis reviews and discusses computer aided ergonomics as a means for integration of ergonomics in product design. A web-based support system for effective employment of human simulation tools is developed using a participative approach and evaluated based on the system's usability. The objective of the fourth part of the thesis is to study how human simulation tools can aid designers' consideration of human diversity to accommodate users of diverse anthropometric characteristics in multivariate design problems such as automobile cockpits. The work involves the evaluation of different approaches for the generation of specific manikin families which can be used as test groups for fitting trials in the virtual design process. The research demonstrates enhancements in design methodology knowledge to support integration of ergonomics in product design processes with a focus on anthropometric diversity in vehicle design.

This study analyses students&rsquo / design processes within a graduation project that is devised as to approximate a real-life design task. It comprises a literature search on developments in design methodology, and two field studies, a participant observation study followed by long interviews with a selection of the observation sample. Through the literature search, a framework representing the nature of the design activity is brought together on the basis of three studies in descriptive design methodology. Together with the field studies equipped with this framework, this study sought to elucidate students&rsquo / design processes in order to provide insights for design education. Analysing students&rsquo / processes, their design problems and the academic scheme within which they operated, pertaining to their respective influences on students&rsquo / projects and progresses, implications to facilitate further developments of educational curriculum and academic schemes are reached.

An argument is developed for a new framework for design, to assist in overcoming barriers to the implementation of environmentally responsible solutions for building design. Though there exist the technical solutions to move towards more environmentally benign building practices, the vast majority of building designers do not employ these solutions in their designs. The research first identifies some problems to be overcome in order to improve the implementation of environmentally responsible design solutions. These problems are: the complexity and value conflict presented by environmental issues; the inability of designers to effectively pre-structure design problems in terms of environmental issues; the difficulty designers face in making design decisions regarding environmental issues; the ineffectiveness of existing tools at providing assistance with these problems, and the lack of ecological grounding of existing tools and of design thinking in general. The search for solutions to these problems guides the direction of the research. Three streams of investigation are conducted, making up the first three parts of the thesis. The first stream is an investigation of design methods which results in recommendations for ways of providing assistance to the designer. A range of existing environmental assessment tools are reviewed in the light of these recommendations and their suitability, as providers of design assistance, is evaluated. The second stream is an investigation of the potential for ecological theory to inform design thinking and then, hence, to inform the development of building environmental assessment tools. Seven principles for ecological design are developed and these shape further recommendations for means of providing assistance to designers. The third stream documents the testing of some of the recommendations, from theory, in practice. A series of case studies have been conducted in which two interventions have been made into the design process. The first intervention is the front-loading of the design process with environmental considerations by implementing an Environmental Brief. The second intervention is the introduction of life cycle thinking into the design process. The results from these three streams of investigation inform the development of a new model for building environmental assessment that provides assistance during the design process. The new model is a framework for the design process within which various components fulfil a series of interrelated tasks aimed at solving the problems that currently lead to poor implementation of environmental design strategies. The implementation of recommendations based on the seven principles for ecological design produce a new paradigm for environmental assessment of buildings. In particular the application of the building life cycle, in the form of an organisational structure for the framework, provides a means of visualising and mapping the relationships between the building and the environment. This helps the designer to better understand these relationships and therefore be able to better deal with their complexity and the conflicts arising between various competing environmental issues. The building life cycle, provides an overarching structure within which any environmental issues may be considered. This provides great flexibility, for consideration of unique project parameters, for the inclusion of different existing tools within the new framework and for the future evolution of the framework and the issues that it covers. The framework directs emphasis toward the early stages of the design process though the environmental briefing process. The briefing process assists with the setting of priorities for the client and design team, which in turn lead to the setting of design problems that are more likely to contain environmental criteria. The most beneficial aspect of this is found to be the improved pre-structuring of design problems over time as experience of previous projects is utilised when considering new ones. This highlights an important role for the framework as a record of the design process. This record can be used as a reference throughout the design of the building under consideration at the time, and for reference during the design of future projects.

Designers e profissionais de diversas áreas de conhecimento têm utilizado a Etnografia com o intuito de aproximar a teoria da realidade na qual pode ser aplicada. No processo de design, a Etnografia propõe uma forma empática de abordar pessoas em seu ambiente de vivência, auxiliando o designer a conhecer a realidade do grupo da forma mais natural possível. Assim, o designer torna-se mais propenso a compreender melhor o comportamento das pessoas e identificar necessidades reais a serem atendidas. Esta pesquisa teve como objetivo elaborar um Framework para auxiliar o designer na realização da pesquisa com usuários, utilizando métodos que partem de uma abordagem etnográfica para identificar as necessidades de um grupo de pessoas. Para tanto, a revisão de literatura abrangeu o estudo da Etnografia e sua aproximação com a disciplina de Design, concentrando-se, em seguida, nos métodos de pesquisa com usuários. A partir disso, foi possível estabelecer categorias de métodos que se baseiam em diferentes formas de participação do usuário na pesquisa, incluindo métodos comumente aplicados em pesquisas de Marketing, métodos provenientes da Etnografia e métodos com influência do Co-design. Após a revisão de literatura, deu-se início ao desenvolvimento do Framework para Pesquisa com Usuários, realizado em três momentos. Inicialmente, foram definidas as etapas que compõem a pesquisa com usuários; em seguida, foram definidos os manuais e livros utilizados como fontes de referência; por fim, realizou-se uma triagem para selecionar os métodos de pesquisa com usuários. A triagem foi dividida em quatro etapas (listagem, mapeamento, agrupamento e seleção), abrangendo 337 métodos retirados das fontes de referência. Ao final, foram selecionados 45 métodos caracterizados a partir de uma abordagem etnográfica e agrupados de acordo com as categorias estabelecidas. O resultado deste estudo é composto por sugestões sobre importantes aspectos a serem considerados durante a pesquisa com usuários e pelo “Framework para Pesquisa com Usuários”, estruturado em três etapas (Planejar, Coletar, e Organizar), que contém as sugestões elaboradas de forma resumida e os métodos passíveis de aplicação, em conformidade com o objetivo de cada etapa. / Designers and professionals from various fields of knowledge have been used Ethnography in order to bring the theory for the reality in which it can be applied. In design process, Ethnography proposes an empathic manner to approach the user in its context, assisting the designer to know people’s life in the most natural way as possible. Thus, the designer becomes more likely to better understand people’s behaviour and identify real needs to be addressed. This research aimed to develop a Framework to assist the designer in conducting users research, using methods based on an ethnographic approach in order to identify real needs of a group. For such purpose, the literature review covered the study of Ethnography and its approximation with Design discipline, focusing then on methods for users research. From this, it was possible to establish categories of methods that are based on different forms of user participation in research, including methods generally used in Marketing research, methods from Ethnography, and methods influenced by Co-design. After the literature review, the development of the Framework for Users Research was performed in three moments. Initially, the steps of user research were defined; then the manuals and books used as reference sources were defined; and finally, a screening for select methods of user research was carried out. The screening was divided into four stages (listing, mapping, grouping, and selection) including 337 methods taken from reference sources. A whole of 45 methods were selected and characterized from an ethnographic approach, then they were grouped according to the established categories. The result of this study is composed by suggestions about important aspects to be considered during the user research; and by the “Framework for Users Research” structured in three stages – Planning, Collecting, and Organizing, that contains the suggestions briefly and the methods that can be applied in accordance with the purpose of each stage.

Designers e profissionais de diversas áreas de conhecimento têm utilizado a Etnografia com o intuito de aproximar a teoria da realidade na qual pode ser aplicada. No processo de design, a Etnografia propõe uma forma empática de abordar pessoas em seu ambiente de vivência, auxiliando o designer a conhecer a realidade do grupo da forma mais natural possível. Assim, o designer torna-se mais propenso a compreender melhor o comportamento das pessoas e identificar necessidades reais a serem atendidas. Esta pesquisa teve como objetivo elaborar um Framework para auxiliar o designer na realização da pesquisa com usuários, utilizando métodos que partem de uma abordagem etnográfica para identificar as necessidades de um grupo de pessoas. Para tanto, a revisão de literatura abrangeu o estudo da Etnografia e sua aproximação com a disciplina de Design, concentrando-se, em seguida, nos métodos de pesquisa com usuários. A partir disso, foi possível estabelecer categorias de métodos que se baseiam em diferentes formas de participação do usuário na pesquisa, incluindo métodos comumente aplicados em pesquisas de Marketing, métodos provenientes da Etnografia e métodos com influência do Co-design. Após a revisão de literatura, deu-se início ao desenvolvimento do Framework para Pesquisa com Usuários, realizado em três momentos. Inicialmente, foram definidas as etapas que compõem a pesquisa com usuários; em seguida, foram definidos os manuais e livros utilizados como fontes de referência; por fim, realizou-se uma triagem para selecionar os métodos de pesquisa com usuários. A triagem foi dividida em quatro etapas (listagem, mapeamento, agrupamento e seleção), abrangendo 337 métodos retirados das fontes de referência. Ao final, foram selecionados 45 métodos caracterizados a partir de uma abordagem etnográfica e agrupados de acordo com as categorias estabelecidas. O resultado deste estudo é composto por sugestões sobre importantes aspectos a serem considerados durante a pesquisa com usuários e pelo “Framework para Pesquisa com Usuários”, estruturado em três etapas (Planejar, Coletar, e Organizar), que contém as sugestões elaboradas de forma resumida e os métodos passíveis de aplicação, em conformidade com o objetivo de cada etapa. / Designers and professionals from various fields of knowledge have been used Ethnography in order to bring the theory for the reality in which it can be applied. In design process, Ethnography proposes an empathic manner to approach the user in its context, assisting the designer to know people’s life in the most natural way as possible. Thus, the designer becomes more likely to better understand people’s behaviour and identify real needs to be addressed. This research aimed to develop a Framework to assist the designer in conducting users research, using methods based on an ethnographic approach in order to identify real needs of a group. For such purpose, the literature review covered the study of Ethnography and its approximation with Design discipline, focusing then on methods for users research. From this, it was possible to establish categories of methods that are based on different forms of user participation in research, including methods generally used in Marketing research, methods from Ethnography, and methods influenced by Co-design. After the literature review, the development of the Framework for Users Research was performed in three moments. Initially, the steps of user research were defined; then the manuals and books used as reference sources were defined; and finally, a screening for select methods of user research was carried out. The screening was divided into four stages (listing, mapping, grouping, and selection) including 337 methods taken from reference sources. A whole of 45 methods were selected and characterized from an ethnographic approach, then they were grouped according to the established categories. The result of this study is composed by suggestions about important aspects to be considered during the user research; and by the “Framework for Users Research” structured in three stages – Planning, Collecting, and Organizing, that contains the suggestions briefly and the methods that can be applied in accordance with the purpose of each stage.

Designers e profissionais de diversas áreas de conhecimento têm utilizado a Etnografia com o intuito de aproximar a teoria da realidade na qual pode ser aplicada. No processo de design, a Etnografia propõe uma forma empática de abordar pessoas em seu ambiente de vivência, auxiliando o designer a conhecer a realidade do grupo da forma mais natural possível. Assim, o designer torna-se mais propenso a compreender melhor o comportamento das pessoas e identificar necessidades reais a serem atendidas. Esta pesquisa teve como objetivo elaborar um Framework para auxiliar o designer na realização da pesquisa com usuários, utilizando métodos que partem de uma abordagem etnográfica para identificar as necessidades de um grupo de pessoas. Para tanto, a revisão de literatura abrangeu o estudo da Etnografia e sua aproximação com a disciplina de Design, concentrando-se, em seguida, nos métodos de pesquisa com usuários. A partir disso, foi possível estabelecer categorias de métodos que se baseiam em diferentes formas de participação do usuário na pesquisa, incluindo métodos comumente aplicados em pesquisas de Marketing, métodos provenientes da Etnografia e métodos com influência do Co-design. Após a revisão de literatura, deu-se início ao desenvolvimento do Framework para Pesquisa com Usuários, realizado em três momentos. Inicialmente, foram definidas as etapas que compõem a pesquisa com usuários; em seguida, foram definidos os manuais e livros utilizados como fontes de referência; por fim, realizou-se uma triagem para selecionar os métodos de pesquisa com usuários. A triagem foi dividida em quatro etapas (listagem, mapeamento, agrupamento e seleção), abrangendo 337 métodos retirados das fontes de referência. Ao final, foram selecionados 45 métodos caracterizados a partir de uma abordagem etnográfica e agrupados de acordo com as categorias estabelecidas. O resultado deste estudo é composto por sugestões sobre importantes aspectos a serem considerados durante a pesquisa com usuários e pelo “Framework para Pesquisa com Usuários”, estruturado em três etapas (Planejar, Coletar, e Organizar), que contém as sugestões elaboradas de forma resumida e os métodos passíveis de aplicação, em conformidade com o objetivo de cada etapa. / Designers and professionals from various fields of knowledge have been used Ethnography in order to bring the theory for the reality in which it can be applied. In design process, Ethnography proposes an empathic manner to approach the user in its context, assisting the designer to know people’s life in the most natural way as possible. Thus, the designer becomes more likely to better understand people’s behaviour and identify real needs to be addressed. This research aimed to develop a Framework to assist the designer in conducting users research, using methods based on an ethnographic approach in order to identify real needs of a group. For such purpose, the literature review covered the study of Ethnography and its approximation with Design discipline, focusing then on methods for users research. From this, it was possible to establish categories of methods that are based on different forms of user participation in research, including methods generally used in Marketing research, methods from Ethnography, and methods influenced by Co-design. After the literature review, the development of the Framework for Users Research was performed in three moments. Initially, the steps of user research were defined; then the manuals and books used as reference sources were defined; and finally, a screening for select methods of user research was carried out. The screening was divided into four stages (listing, mapping, grouping, and selection) including 337 methods taken from reference sources. A whole of 45 methods were selected and characterized from an ethnographic approach, then they were grouped according to the established categories. The result of this study is composed by suggestions about important aspects to be considered during the user research; and by the “Framework for Users Research” structured in three stages – Planning, Collecting, and Organizing, that contains the suggestions briefly and the methods that can be applied in accordance with the purpose of each stage.