Designers’ priorities determine how they will approach a design problem. Design teams that value people’s communities and want to give them an active role in the design process will employ activity-centered design or design research. If designers are more interested in producing work that turns a profit or satisfies a client’s demands, a more traditional approach is often used.
On this page, I will introduce you to several design approaches—some more traditional and others designed to create experiences that support people in making special memories.
Design Approaches Diagrams
I have visualized design approaches to make them more understandable.
Traditional: Designer-Driven
Design for people.
- Users: People who use the design have no say in the process and are an afterthought.
- Designers: The client or the designer knows best.
Traditional: Client-Driven
Human-Centered
Design that considers people.
- Users: People who use the design were in the designer’s mind and maybe filled out a survey or did a focus group.
- Designers: The designer or client should probably ask users what they think should be designed.
Experience Design: Story-Driven
(Theme Parks like Walt Disney World do this.)
Participatory Design
Designing with people.
- Users: People who use the design are experts about their lives and actively participate in creating the design.
- Designers: The designer is an expert at the design process and creation and acts as a partner with users.
What about the product, service, or system you observe makes you believe that this outcome’s design was actively shaped by the people who use it in a partnership with designers?
Experience Design: People-Driven
Everyone Designs
Design by people.
- Users: People who use the design made it entirely.
- Designers: Are also users!
What about the product, service, or system you observe makes you believe that this outcome’s design was formatted entirely by the people who use it?
Critical Design
Design to provoke a response.
- Users: People who use the design engage with it on various levels (viewing, touching, writing inside, cranking, following its rules) and are made to think and consider often challenging content.
- Designers: The designer creates outcomes to stir an emotional response in the people who use them.
What about the product, service, or system you observe makes you believe this outcome was designed to spark a response?
Download the Visualizations
Download the PDF below!
