9 research outputs found
"How Come This Man Is Homeless?" An Ethnographic Exploration of Identity Work among Volunteers in a Diner Serving to the Homeless
No full textCelikoglu, Ozge Merzali/0000-0003-0906-5700In this study, we explore the identity work among volunteers in a local restaurant in one of the metropolitan cities of Turkey, which serves to paying customers by daytime, and free food to the homeless in the evening. Our setting, which we callThe Diner, is a local attempt to help homeless people whose number increases day by day. Through ethnographic fieldwork, we found that the volunteers at The Diner act asteamsbased on their selective association with a particular volunteer group. To gain an in-depth understanding of these volunteer teams, we examined the volunteers' identification process with volunteer work; structures and motivations of the teams; and collaborations and competitions between the teams. Our approach relies on Snow and Anderson's conception of identity work, and we utilized Goffman's terms of performance, teams, and definitional disruptions
When rabbits lead to ideas: Inspiring design by retelling stories through metaphors
No full textThis article proposes a method that utilizes expressive narratives to inspire design, especially in the conceptualization process leading to design ideas. In this method, expressive narratives need to be deconstructed by designers through the identification of metaphors. These metaphors are then examined to discover the concepts they embody. While interpreting the metaphors the designers try to find alternative representations referring to the same concepts by creating generative metaphors, which open up new ways of looking at the situation by defining new connections. Eventually, the proposed method assists designers particularly in the development of coherent scenarios, abstraction and re-contextualization of objects, and generation of new meanings in their conceptualization process
Looking for ethnography in design research through three decades
No full textEthnographic methods are widely used in design research and provide valuable data for gaining in-depth understanding of any particular situation. To broaden the use of ethnography in design research, first, we investigated how ethnography and design research are related in the last 36 years by focusing on which ethnographic methods are utilized; why and in which domains of design research these methods are applied and, how these three aspects relate to each other altogether. Through content analyses we found meaningful associations between methods, goals and domains of application. Our research identifies gaps on theoretical, methodological and contextual implications. Based on these gaps we propose particular opportunities for future research
The story of convertible Sofa-Bed: reading the social change in Turkey through the design of an industrial product
No full textAn ethnography of the design studio: Exploring social interactions and performances in studio environment through Goffman’s dramaturgical approach
No full textThis paper aims to disclose undercurrents of in-class interactions and provide a deeper understanding of the social interactions and performances in the design studio. With adopting an ethnographic approach, this study attempts to explore the participants’ activities and dynamics behind them. The chosen subject environment for this study is a first year basic design studio at a selected School of Architecture and Design. The setting is taken as a social environment and observed using ethnographic methods; then the observations were tried to be interpreted through Erving Goffman’s metaphor of drama (1959). This study is not primarily interested in the materials used in the class; similarly, maintaining a certain standpoint for the methodology of the education is out of concern. Rather, it uses such subjects as mediums to understand participants’ behaviour in the design studio. Being an on-going descriptive work, focusing on social interactions, this study delivers insights from the design studio and provides social explanations which can form a basis for developments in design education in the future
“Learning by doing” revisited: an interactive experience in teaching design methods
No full textThis study represents an interactive experience towards conducting an undergraduate theory-based design course, ‘Design Theories and Methods’ in a product design department. These types of theoretical courses are usually conducted with a classical form of teaching where the lecturer is in a dominant position and bestows knowledge upon the learner (Wood and Rust, 2003). However, according to constructivist learning theory, knowledge cannot exist independently of the knower, but must be constructed through his own understanding of the situation (Hein, 1991). Therefore while a ‘revisit’ to Bauhaus education model is suggested, the main hypothesis is that “learning by doing” would provide a better learning process for the students and considering that the success of the students depend on their engagement in what they are learning, (Bayer, 1976). With this approach, students are made responsible for the ‘teaching’ within teamwork where the students are positioned to be active and creative where the lecturer is providing guidance (Yazici et al, 2001). The outcomes of the study show that students endeavor significantly more to learn and reformulate the topics in order to teach, and the interaction between students allows a more effective process for learning
How Do User Stories Inspire Design? A Study of Cultural Probes
No full text This paper reports an initial study using cultural probes to support design. Its aim was to provide designers and design students with ethnographic information not easily accessible via surveys, interviews, and user statistics. Our research applied the cultural probes method to domestic ironing practices. We communicated the narrative and pictorial data generated by this method to designers and asked them to interpret these data in terms of a new ironing board design. Finally, we conducted a content analysis to reveal how designers interpreted and used data from cultural probes to inform design ideas. </jats:p
Proceedings of the 8th International Visual Methods Conference
Get PDFThis proceeding contains articles presented at the 8th International Visual Methods Conference (IVMC8) organized by Sapienza University of Rome - Saperi&Co. and Melting Pro, Rome, Italy on 29th-31st May 2023. Visual methods use a variety of visual tools (images, maps, drawings, graphic novels, photos, films, videos, etc.) to communicate complex concepts. These tools are generated through participatory activities, research and planning activities or even through using already existing visual materials in an original way. The topic of this 8th edition of IVMC was Transition: Preparing for the Next Generation. In the evolving scenario visual methods play an important role, embracing much more than the simple communication of results.
Conference Title: 8th International Visual Methods ConferenceConference Acronyms: IVMC8Conference Theme: Transition: Preparing for the Next GenerationConference Date: 29th-31st May 2023Conference Location: Rome, ItalyConference Organizers: Sapienza University of Rome - Saperi&Co. and Melting Pro, Rome, Ital
