So after reading my Honours dissertation I read through my Masters thesis too. This has really helped me see the thread in my work and clarify the purpose of my PhD which has been waylaid by the the literature I’ve been reading and the ideas that has sparked.
So from my Honours dissertation where I decided graphic designers needed to know more about including people they are designing for in their work, I learned how designers could use different research methods, design methods and (what Brenda Laurel 2003 calls) design research methods. Unfortunately I called this thesis ‘An Exploration into Design Research Methodologies’, rookie mistake, as it was an exploration of methods; 1 in particular – cultural probes (Gaver, Dunne, Pacenti 1999).
In fact that mistake in hindsight is key component of that thesis, and one which has lead me to the PhD. A methodology implies a route or system which uses a set of methods, the results of which are analysed to come to a conclusion, responding to a hypothesis. However this thesis explored visual methods and their results, which, to a certain extent, cannot be analaysed, so what was analysed was participants experience of engaging with each visual method. These conversations held incredible insights for me into people having their voice heard about a particular topic and the possibilities and problems this may present which I am exploring in my PhD now.
As always lots of food for thought. Your website has given me ideas into how i want to develop my own once my own PhD is finished (really need your help on how i do this as i’m not a visual person at all). The visualisation of data as well as the representation of people within the visual process are areas that are just not covered very much within either ethics or methodology.
Interestingly you are the first PhD student i have come across that has reflected back on earlier work and been able to see the developments in your own thinking and writing. This is such an important practice we must all take with us as we evolve into researchers, designers, academics etc
I’m on a bender so i could write forever… i’ll stop now before i get out of control.
Well done on having such as brilliant site and sorry for the disappointment when you realise it is “I” who has responded and not someone more interesting.
Zachari
Thanks for you comment Zachari and always good to hear from you.
I found this process quite useful in clarifying my thoughts on the purpose of my work as it seems to change all the time after I have read more and more literature! However this brought me back to the core of my motivation so was rather useful. How do you keep on track around the purpose of your work?
Happy to help with ideas to develop you PhD once it is finished, the more people that are able to learn from our toil the better rather than collecting dust in a library ; )
In thinking about keeping around the purpose of my work i was taken in two directions. The first is the immediate and constant state of ethical re-visioning. Constantly keeping participants of the project and those it has a wider impact on at the forefront of my mind helps both motivate me into finishing and also engenders a clear theoretical, methodological and ethical need to “do the right thing.” I have a similar problem to yourself in that where you felt that graphic designers needed to know more about the people they were designing for, part of my PhD is to instill in social workers that they need to know more about the people that they are caring for. Whilst mind is not grounded in a methodological struggle it is still grounded in proving that this area/group of people have a purpose in current practice. Secondly, and much broadly, the purpose of my work keeps changing as i encounter new literature, ideas, methods and even people – particularly like yourself – who are open to discussions and deabtes about the purpose of the work that they are doing. I think if more researchers/academics/practitioners gave considerable thought to “how” and “why” there would be less waste and more progressive and meaningful projects out there.
Zachari