designing social systems in a changing world

Bela H. Banathy,1996 by Plenum Press

in New York

Part 1: Understanding Design

“We are entering the 21st century with

organisations designed during the 19th”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/86624586@N00/10187684

Activity

Review 20 definitions of design and synthesies/construct your own definition.

“Design uses knowledge to create what should be; it is the

core of all professional activities. Design is the intellectual activity

of changing existing situations into desired ones.”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/thomashawk/497851367

“The systems design approach seeks to understand the

problem situation as a system of interconnected,

interdependent, and interacting problems”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/irschick/2975202054

Activity

Select a socio-technical system of your interest and stipulate fields of knowledge

that might contribute to the knowledge base of engaging in the (re)design of your

selected system.

“Messy systems have properties that none of their parts have. These properties

are lost when the system is taken apart”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/uggboy/5181846719

“It is a mistake to begin design by focusing on the problem and

leave thinking about the solution to later stages. Over

the course of design, often designers are thrown back to

square one”http://www.flickr.com/photos/linhngan/2849874977

“A design literate population will be able to make judgments about

the instrumental and social effectiveness of design decisions. It can make judgments about the

socio-economic and political implications of design decisions”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tubb/4385856884

“Design literacty enables us to understand what design is as a

human activity, what design does and how it does it, what the role of

design is in society, what the impacts of design are on human

quality and betterment”http://www.flickr.com/photos/modenadude/5256894008

“We have two choices. We can relegate authority and

responsibility to others who represent us, as we do today. Or

we can empower ourselves by acquiring design literacy and

competence”http://www.flickr.com/photos/toniblay/92083733

“The primary generator is formed very early in the design process as

a set of initiating concepts. It helps designers make the creative leap

between problem formulation and a solution concept”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lrargerich/4122613710

“Broad design requirements in combination with the primary

generator help designers arrive at initial conjecture that can be

tested as an interactive process. Conjectures and requirements

mutually shape each other”http://www.flickr.com/photos/hamed/2070859805

“Designers seek solutions by synthesis, scientists by analysis”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kurafire/250686996

“Ideal designs should be technologically feasible, operationally viable, and capable of rapid learning

and development” -Ackoff

http://www.flickr.com/photos/genista/3484416

1)Look at the unstructured problem situation2)Develop a richest possible structured picture

3)Speculate about systems with relevant solutions4)Develop abstract representations (requirements)

5)Compare conceptual model with problem6)Identify feasible and desirable changes

7)Take action and introduce changes

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pensiero/217713887

“The behaviour of designers depends on their image of

society and the image they have about the societal

function of the system they wish to create”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/danielavladimirova/4922367899/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/belowred/507227632

“An image of a new system will be revolutionary, but the move

toward it can be evolutionary. The image is speculative and

serves to trigger further exploration and refinement”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/eole/380316678

“Incremental adaptations or restructuring of our existing

systems is not working for us. We have to transform our systems and learn to change and coevolve with

our constantly changing environment”

Activity

Run a design process

●Vision-quest:● What kind of society do we wish?● What is our contribution to this vision?

●Initial exploration:● Study various dimensions: economic,

sociocultural, sociotechnical, technological, organisational, scientific...

● Revisit the vision statement● Define system boundaries & requirements● Formulate collectively agreed core values

●First image of the system:● Build a 'macro-view' of the ideal system● Evaluate against requirements

Group techniques

●Nominal Group Technique (NGT):● Formulation of triggering questions● Silent individual ideation in writing● Record and display to the group● Discussion and clarification of ideas● Selection and designation of ideas

●Role Assignment:● Guardian of participation● Guardian of focus● Guardian of selected group technique● Guardian of documentation● Guardian of tolerance and values● Guardian of motivation● Guardian of coordination

Group techniques

●Heartstorming:● Express the subjective, value-laden

aspirations and idealistic dreams of the participants

● Create a common vision● Requirements:

● Attractive● Powerful● Clear and focused

●Delphi●Interpretive Structural Modeling●Option Profile and Option Field●Attributes Porfile and Attributes Field●Trade-off Analysis●CogniScope

http://www.flickr.com/photos/nimrodcooper/2007228257

Activity

Construct a statement of 2 pages that you could use in discussing the necessity

of developing design literacy and competence

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenjoaquin/1100098716